Albert Dow III and the Granite Man Triathlon

Honoring a Local Hero’s Enduring Legacy

By Charlene Muscatell

Forty-three years ago this month, tragedy struck a local family and entire New Hampshire communities when beloved Albert Dow III perished on Mount Washington while searching for two lost hikers. Albert was profoundly mourned at only 28 years old as he was well-loved by family, friends, and many who knew him. He was a selfless man who often thought about the well-being of others. He was looked up to as a great friend, a professional mountain climber, a mentor, and a highly trusted companion to many.

From this tragedy, inspiration ensued. A scholarship, triathlon, novel, short film, and memorials have all been constructed in his name and in his honor. Search and rescue protocols were forever changed and a survivor who was inspired to do great things with a second chance at life innovated to improve the lives of many.

Born in Wolfeboro, New Hampshire, and raised in a large house with much of his close-knit family in nearby Tuftonboro, Albert and his two sisters spent much time together with opportunities to develop different skills. Outdoor sports, such as ski racing and watching wildlife, were two of the Dow family's ever-present passions. Albert was no exception, and he excelled. He and his siblings were involved in ski racing at an early age. When Albert and his sister, Susan, were teenagers, they were both on ski racing teams traveling around the region for different competitions. In his college years, Albert was invited to try rock climbing, and he took to it naturally. He was part of the first wave of rock climbers in North Conway. Climbing even brought him out west to explore.

When Albert returned to New England, he began working for EMS (Eastern Mountain Sports) as a climbing guide and enjoyed it greatly. As tech gear wasn’t as big as it is now, Albert actually favored his baby blue ski parka from his days at the Waterville Valley Trail Smashers Ski Club.

He became an extraordinary climber; some even called him “a ballerina on rocks.” He joined the Mountain Rescue Service in North Conway, not hesitating to help other climbers and hikers in need. “If I was in trouble, I hope someone would be out there looking for me,” he would often tell friends and family when they asked why he did it.

Albert’s beloved kind and heroic nature showed throughout his short life. He would often think of others, even when he was very young. Albert’s sister, Susan Dow Johnson, shares a story from when they were in grade school: “My brother befriended a couple of road workers through his lawn care service, and they would run into each other on the side of the road from time to time. Albert saw they were out working, and it was a hot day, so he asked our grandmother for a bucket of her famous lemonade and he brought it up to them with a couple of cups…they were cleaning up brush on the side of the highway near our home in Tuftonboro… He was always thinking of others.”

Albert's selfless nature went beyond people. One day, while traveling west to rock climb in Monument Valley, Albert, and his friend pulled over on the highway when he saw that a bald eagle had died. Growing up watching eagles and other wildlife with his family, as the Lakes Region is in the flyway for many species, Albert had a respect for birds of prey. Knowing that Bald Eagles were protected, he stayed with the animal and sent his friends off to the authorities. Laws protecting these birds are connected with Native American tribes, and because of this, only a Native Person can retrieve the animal. Because of his act of kindness, Albert was gifted with one of the eagle’s feathers wrapped in a red ribbon by the Natives as a thank-you for their respect.

Susan went on to talk about Albert's great sense of humor and that when he would take new climbers out, he would often make jokes. One day, he was climbing the slab on Whiteface, where it rounded out on top. He told the guy he was guiding to just walk the rest of the way, but he felt that it was too steep. Albert told the man, “I grew up in New England, where the kitchen floors are steeper than this rock.”

Hiking Mount Washington offers challenges and potential dangers all 12 months of the year, and the strongest hikers can potentially run into trouble. Mount Washington has the most extreme weather in the world; even with the best weather predictions and preparation, one must take caution and know when to turn around. Sometimes there is a strong need to reach that summit, especially when one feels well prepared to do so. Some decisions do not seem like mistakes until it is too late, especially with little experience in this type of decision-making. It is not only about your skills as a climber or hiker.

In late January of 1982, Hugh Herr, 17 years of age at the time, and Jeff Batzer (20) were climbing a technical route up Huntington Ravine on Mount Washington. As many who trek up this peak, they experienced an unexpected storm which turned into a blizzard. Dealing with minus-20 windchills and waist-to-chest-deep snow, they kept pushing for the summit. Once they had decided to change course, attempting to turn around, they headed the wrong way and started hiking off-trail. They were lost, could not see their way, and it was frigid. Eventually, they found shelter in a cave and hunkered down in hopes of warming up, waiting out the storm, or being rescued.

In the middle of the night, the New Hampshire Fish & Game and Search and Rescue services were notified of the missing climbers. Mountain Rescue Services in North Conway was also called in. Not knowing where the climbers could be, four teams of two, including Albert Dow, were deployed to different locations on the mountain. Albert and his teammate Michael Hartrich were higher up on the mountain than the others, near the Lions Head Trail, on day two of the search, when they spotted tracks in the snow. They followed the tracks until they were no longer visible, so they began their descent back down the mountain. By this time, some of the volunteers had started to suffer from severe hypothermia and frostbite.

Shortly after they started back down, a call came through the radio to the rest of the team with Michael yelling, “We have been avalanched.” A horrifying situation as the other search and rescue teams quickly reached their location and dug for the two buried under the snow. Michael was found alive with a hand he managed to push through the heavy snow. Tragically, Albert had been found struck by a tree, which broke his neck. He had already passed away.

Three days after the two men became lost, a MRS team finally discovered Batzer and Herr in their cave. They had suffered severe frostbite. Jeff lost fingers and part of a leg, while Hugh lost both of his legs. In the hospital recovering, Hugh and Jeff were visited by some of the search and rescue team members, who explained what had happened to Albert. Despite the many challenges this proved to be, their survival and the devastation by the news of Alberts’s sacrifice inspired Hugh Herr. Hugh felt obligated to push the boundaries for himself for Alberts’s memory and those in need. He is now a world-renowned developer of high-tech prosthetics at the MIT Media Lab, and he still climbs mountains to this day. Hugh often states how he feels forever connected to Albert. You can often find him giving inspiring speeches.

Since Albert’s death, Mountain Rescue Services has changed its protocols regarding how it runs its search and rescues and has also included worker’s compensation for volunteers. Albert was the first and only member of New Hampshire Search and Rescue to have been killed in the line of duty. 

“The Mountain Rescue Service provides specialized technical teams comprised of world-class guides and climbers who volunteer their time and expertise in the service of hikers and climbers who need assistance in and around the White Mountains of New Hampshire. The team is ‘on call’ 24 hours per day, all seasons, with volunteers being mobilized for a full range of incidents: complicated multi-day and nighttime searches in the depth of winter throughout the White Mountain National Forest; technical rope rescues on the region’s many rock climbing cliffs; swift water rescue assistance; and lift evacuations at area ski resorts.”- Mountain Rescue Service at https://nhmrs.org.

Soon after Albert Dow’s passing, his family members who had moved away returned to New England. They realized how important family is and decided that being near each other was most important. A few of Albert’s close friends, adamant about doing something in Albert’s name to honor him, founded The Albert Dow III Scholarship, established at Kingswood Regional High School in Wolfeboro that year. Local businessman Steve Flagg, owner of the Nordic Skier Bike and Ski shop, was one of those founders.

This scholarship aimed to raise funds for “an award recognizing a Kingswood High School Graduate who exemplifies unselfish devotion to the service of mankind. Albert Dow III gave the ultimate sacrifice, his life, in the mountain search and rescue of two complete strangers on January 25, 1982. The Scholarship Fund memorializes Albert’s heroic acts and outstanding life while seeking to inspire others with his service and selfless devotion.” www.thedowgroup.com. In the first year, a total of $500.00 was awarded.

The summer after Albert was killed, his family and the friends who founded the new scholarship in his name also created the first-ever Granite Man Triathlon in Wolfeboro to raise funds for the Albert Dow III scholarship fund. The Granite Man is a race including a .75-mile swim, a 15-mile bike ride, and a 4.2-mile run, making it a fitting memorial to Albert. With the exception of 2020, this triathlon has been held every summer since. To this day, Steve Flagg, the Dow sisters, and their children have been very involved in the triathlon.

In 2024, the 41st Annual Granite Man Triathlon had an estimated 230 participants. In 2025, the triathlon will be held on Saturday, August 16. Now in its 42nd year, the award has distributed nearly $250,000. The New Hampshire Charitable Foundation currently manages the fund, which allocates approximately $10,000 annually. The triathlon is now a popular annual event that attracts participants from as far away as Europe.

“The Granite Man Triathlon was established in honor of Albert Dow, with proceeds initially funding a scholarship created in his name. Thanks to the success of the race over the years, the scholarship has now reached its funding goals.” - Lexey Austin (Wolfeboro Parks and Recreation).

Because of the popularity of the event and donations to the fund, the scholarship is now self-propelled and will be able to sustain itself moving forward. Susan Johnson and everyone involved feel that now that the scholarship is secure, the proceeds of this triathlon should be allotted to the Wolfeboro Parks and Rec department.

“Parks and Rec has been an absolutely wonderful partner and very involved...They even offer a kids' version of the race earlier in the summer...We decided to turn the proceeds over to those who helped us”- Susan Dow Johnson. Although the proceeds of the race will no longer contribute to the scholarship fund, the race continues to memorialize Albert’s life.

More than four decades later, his friends and family remember how selfless Albert was and keep his legacy alive in interviews and short films. Joe Lentini, Albert’s friend and MRS member who deployed Albert and the seven other volunteers that day, worked with Arc’teryx to create the short film “109 Below: A Fateful Rescue on Mount Washington” dedicated to this tragic story on Mount Washington that day and what changed for rescuers and the prosthetic industry in the aftermath.

“I keep coming back to how heroic Al was. This didn’t happen to him because he was paid to be up on that mountain. He did it because he cared so much for other people…And if he was still around, I suspect he’d still be doing it.” -Joe Lentini (The Morning Journal, 2002). The film was released in December of 2024 and can be found on YouTube.

As this article only touches on the surface of the events that unfolded for Albert and everyone involved in the rescue and what came after, you are encouraged to read Ty Gagne’s recently published novel “The Lions of Winter: Survival and Sacrifice on Mount Washington” which thoroughly and carefully pieces together the story, including riveting details of this harrowing tale.

Ty is well known for capturing countless perspectives and details in a story, bringing light and inspiration from tragic events sympathetically written in his previous novels “Where You’ll Find Me: Risk, Decisions, and the Last Climb of Kate Matrosova” and “The Last Traverse; Tragedy and Resilience in the Winter Whites.”

“The Lions of Winter” has just been released and can be purchased at local bookstores.

The Invention of Christmas Lights and a Laconia Man’s Ingenuity

By Charlene Muscatell

This time of year, many of us are feeling the holiday cheer, diligently planning get-togethers and affixing festive decorations to our homes. One household favorite is the addition of strings of white or colored lights to Christmas trees, banisters, doorways and even sweaters. Have you ever wondered how they became a part of holiday traditions? Let’s delve into the history of “Christmas Lights” and see how one local man helped change how we bring a warm, cozy atmosphere to our homes for the holidays.

First, why do we have “Christmas Trees” in our homes? Long before Christianity, many civilizations decorated their homes with evergreens throughout the winter months as they believed it protected their loved ones from evil spirits and illness. This was especially true in European cultures, where they adorned doors and windowsills with boughs of firs and spruce. In the 16th century, the Welsh folk song “Nos Galan” celebrated Winter Solstice and the New Year and included lyrics of hanging holly. This song was later rewritten as the well-known “Deck The Halls” by Scottish Musician Thomas Oliphant to include more Christmas-specific lyrics. By the early 1600s, devout German Christians had traditions of bringing evergreen trees or wood piles with evergreen boughs decorated with lively candles into their homes, centered around Christmas celebrations.

Around the same time in New England, the newly settled American Puritans believed celebrating Christmas was unholy and frivolous, so much so that in 1659, the General Court of Massachusetts enacted a law prohibiting decorations and fining those who didn’t abide. This changed over time as significant influxes of German and Irish immigrants settled and influenced the Northeast.

In 1846, English royals were pictured sketched in the Illustrated London News celebrating the holidays in front of their decorated Christmas tree. It was not the first royal Christmas tree, but because Queen Victoria and her German Husband, Prince Albert, were so loved by their people, this scene popularized holiday festivities and the decorating of Christmas trees. It became very fashionable in both England and East Coast American societies by the late 1800s. The first known Christmas tree in the White House was in 1889, requested by President Benjamin Harrison.

There is an interesting story behind when and how candles were replaced with electric lights to illuminate Christmas trees. As it is widely known, Thomas Edison is credited with inventing the first practical working electric light bulb in 1879 in his New Jersey laboratory. This was an incandescent bulb made with a carbonized cotton filament that lasted over 14 hours. Only three years later, Edward H. Johnson, the Vice President of Edison’s electric company and personal friend of Edison, strung together 80 egg-sized fragile bulbs of red, white and blue to decorate a Christmas tree in the parlor of his New York home. The bulbs were lit up by a filmy electric wire that hung from the ceiling as the tree slowly rotated, making the tree twinkle. This neighborhood was one of the first in New York to have electricity available in homes, so the sight of his twinkling tree was quite the spectacle.

The New York display attracted a lot of attention as a local news reporter spread the word. Noting the interest in the display, Thomas Edison put up lights of his own in front of his laboratory in Menlo Park, now renamed Edison, New Jersey. The lights were seen by foot traffic and passengers in passing trains, gaining attention in surrounding social circles.

Because there was so much interest in the colorful light displays, Edison and Johnson saw the electric bulbs as a solution to the long-standing fear of Christmas trees catching fire by the traditional wax candles and, at the same time, eliminating the mess caused by the dripping wax. They started to sell strings of green or white lights and even offered rental lights. "Electric trees will prove to be far less dangerous than the wax candle parlor trees,” -Johnson proclaimed. Unfortunately, the Edison bulbs proved to be just as prone to starting fires as they also emitted a lot of heat. In 1895, President Grover Cleveland commissioned a tree with Edison bulbs for the first electrically lit Christmas tree in the White House. The large tree held more than a hundred multicolored lights.

According to Business NH Magazine, One cold Christmas morning, more than two decades later, a local Christmas legend was born. In his home in Laconia, New Hampshire, Ralph E. Morris watched as his toddler son Leavitt accidentally knocked a candle over on the Christmas tree it decorated, setting it ablaze and nearly catching the house on fire. Unaware of Johnson’s lights in New York, as news did not travel fast in many circles then, Ralph thought up his own solution to this problem.

At the time, Ralph worked at The New England Telephone and Telegraph Company. The telephone switchboards were built with small flashlight bulbs that lit up when a line was activated. He set his idea in motion, repurposing old bulbs from the switchboards. He spent hours soldering and wiring them together before adding crepe paper to create yellow, orange and green colors and then attached them to an artificial feather tree he had purchased. The design included small filament bulbs with wiring hidden under plastic candle sticks, making them appear like candles. He presented the new tree to his family and friends on Christmas morning of the following year.

From 1933 to 1965, Ralph was also the Executive Theater Manager of The Colonial Theater in Laconia. His time working at the theater allowed for many connections and conversations, including the Christmas lights story. Over time, he surely inspired others to seek less flammable decorating options.

Until the late 1930s, the Morris family, along with many friends and colleagues, believed Ralph to be the original inventor of the electric Christmas string lights, still unaware of the Edison and Johnson lights, which, by then, were becoming more commercially available. Many in the Lakes Region of New Hampshire still to this day believe that Ralph was the first. Although not the case, he may have been the first, especially in the Lakes Region, to come up with a less flammable solution with the use of the smaller bulbs on his setup. The smaller lights were also more manageable and easier to decorate with.

The Morris tree was most recently seen in a collection of Christmas Lights displayed on bulbcollector.com. The Morris family had discovered that the collector purchased it from a family friend on eBay with no noteworthy description, not realizing the potential significance. The collector, through research, had uncovered that the tree was likely originally purchased from a Sears, Roebuck & Co. Catalog, popular at the time. The stem had been painted green and a stronger stand was built to support the newly added lights.

Over time, string lights have gone through mass production by different manufacturers with many improvements along the way. In the 1920s, a thermostat with a strip of metal was added to the bulb of the commercially available lights. When the metal strip heated up, it bent and broke the electrical circuit, turning off the light. When it cooled, the metal bent back, reconnecting the light and turning it back on. This was the development of the twinkle light without the rotating tree.

After World War II, Christmas lights became so popular and widely available that by the late 1940s, outdoor Christmas lights were added to homes and businesses as well. Many incorrectly believed the outdoor bulbs burned brighter and longer if pointed upright and wasted a lot of time decorating. Some early bulbs were molded into shapes of fruit or holiday figures and painted by toy makers. These tended to peel and flake over time from expansion. For decades, string lights were made with incandescent bulbs and you better hope one bulb didn’t fail or the whole string went out!

To increase the sales of string lights, General Electric and Edison's Electric Company encouraged neighborhood contests for the best light displays. Now, there are many string light options including LEDs with shunts to prevent entire strings from failing. They have become an affordable, easily attained product. An estimated 150 million sets of lights are sold yearly in the U.S. alone. They are very much a staple of our holiday season and are used for any occasion from Christmas to weddings and even lighting your patio on summer evenings.

Every year, all across the country, there are innumerable holiday light displays from enthusiastic homeowners to businesses. In central New Hampshire alone, there is an abundance of displays to experience, from “The Gift of Lights” at the New Hampshire Motor Speedway to “The Winter Lights” display at Waterville Valley. The facts included in the above article can be found on history.com, oldchristmastreelights.com and the aforementioned sources. Take a look at our “What’s Up” column for upcoming holiday events. Happy Holidays!

Santa’s Holiday Express

Photo courtesy of Brian Soloman Conway Scenic Railroad

By Lee Caldwell

Prepare for some holiday magic. Santa’s Holiday Express will be leaving the 1874-built Victorian North Conway Station for a trip to Conway and to the land of make-believe.

Trains are scheduled to run on December 1, 7and 8, 14 and 15, and 21 and 23, at 9:30 a.m., 11 a.m., and 1:30 p.m. The total round-trip train ride is around 55 minutes, with an additional 25-minute stop at the train station in Conway.

The train journey through the Conway Valley is 11 miles, round-trip, and goes through some beautiful farm fields with the Moat Mountains in the background. With its wintery landscape in the valley, a stunning view of Mount Washington, the crossings over the Saco and Ellis rivers, and the view of the Moat Mountains, the train ride, itself, has been described as “pretty spectacular”.

During an interview with Greg Neptune, Conway Scenic Railroad Manager of Customer Service, he describes the train ride as follows:

“Well, the ride itself is a journey that departs from North Conway and heads down to Conway Village. There will be Christmas music playing on the train, and the kids, of course, will get a complementary cookie and hot chocolate. When they arrive in Conway, there will be Christmas decorations, and it’s just a great train ride and a great experience to visit with Santa Claus, get their picture taken with Santa, and to ask the big guy himself what they want for Christmas.”

He continued, “We have our 9:30 train, our 11 o’clock train, and our 1:30 train, so kids and their families can get dressed up, and what is great about Christmas time is, all families get dressed up in their pajamas and come down and see Santa Claus, and where everyone wears matching pajama outfits. It’s really a great time.”

Greg said, “You know, kids get together, and every so often, snowball fights and snowman-building can break out [during the stop in Conway]. Being in the White Mountains, the probability for snow is high. So, last year, we had people break out to a snowman-building contest. You never know what you are going to get into when you are around the magic of Santa Claus!

“There have been some years when we have had events outside, where they see Santa outside at the Conway stop. Some years, Santa is on the train. So really, weather depending, you never know what kind of magic is going to pop up, but they’ll see Santa Claus and get to be able to — ever so important — be able to ask Santa how his Christmas is, but more importantly, to tell Santa what they want for Christmas.”

From his home in the North Pole, Santa Claus, himself, joins the interview:

“The most heartwarming thing I do get, and it does happen a lot (when I ask kids what they want for Christmas) is kids wishing for everyone on this Earth to have a good Christmas, believe it or not. And last year in particular, had a lot of kids asking for those 1990s toys that a lot of people grew up with, like Ninja Turtles and stuffed animals. Barbie is still making a comeback, and Matchbox cars are a popular one this season, for sure.”

Santa continues, “I have heard adults ask for spouses for Christmas. Yes, people want to get married for Christmas. There is definitely an air of — there’s something about Christmas time that brings loved ones together, and this, of course, is always a spark of romance around the holidays. So, people often ask for significant others. They also ask for new vehicles and for new places to live. So, I am going to be busy.”

When asked about the reindeer, Santa states that they are going to fly around while he visits Santa’s Holiday Express. “They are very, very busy during the year. They’re at home doing their calisthenics, getting ready for the big night.”

What do the reindeer want for Christmas?

According to Santa, “The reindeer especially love carrots. Rudolph is a huge fan of carrots. Blitzen, he’s kind of shying away from carrots this year. He likes radishes. But everyone else is on the strictly vegetable diet this year. It is also called the Reindeer Diet.”

When asked if he keeps warm enough, Santa replies, “I have a one-of-a-kind outfit that keeps me nice and warm in all weather types, more specifically, up here in the White Mountains.”

What does Santa want for Christmas?

He replies, “What Santa would like for Christmas is more chocolate chip cookies. I cannot get enough of chocolate chip cookies at Christmas.”

Santa wishes everyone a very Merry Christmas and a Happy Holiday Season, and invites everyone to join him on Santa’s Holiday Express.

For more information, go to info@conwayscenic.com Reservations may be made online.

Conway Scenic Railroad is located in North Conway, telephone 603-356-5252.

Great Estates of the Lakes Region

Exterior photo of Lucknow, the Moultonborough estate of Thomas Plant. Today the home and grounds are known as Castle in the Clouds. This is how the home appeared in the late 1910s/early 1920s. (Photo by George Perry, courtesy Castle in the Clouds)

By Kathi Caldwell-Hopper

In the 1800s wealthy people came to New Hampshire to relax and get away from the hustle and bustle of city life. Many people they realized how beautiful and peaceful the area was, and some took action to make the area their year-round home.

Because some of the people owned summer homes in the Lakes Region, it was easy to move in full time. Most of these homes had fireplaces and central heating in the 1800s to mid 1900s it was easy enough to take up residence on a year round basis.

In the Holderness area, one summer visitor loved the area and decided to stay. Isaac Van Horn made his fortune as a real estate developer and when Van Horn and his wife vacationed in the area in 1904 (Squam Lake), they greatly admired the natural beauty of the lakes and mountains..

Mrs. Van Horn was a pretty debutante and much sought after socially, but she seemed to love the quiet country life. The Van Horn’s built their sprawling home high on a hill with views of the surrounding countryside and of course, the lake. After time spent enjoying their beautiful home, Mrs. Van Horn sadly died early in life. Van Horn eventually married again, but his second wife did not embrace the country life as did her predecessor. The estate was sold and today is a beautiful inn with dining. Many of the special architecture and unique touches remain although the inn has been updated.

In the late 1800s, opportunity for rising in the financial world was there for the taking. Such was one man, Charles Babbitt of Enfield, New Hampshire. He worked in the lumber industry and made a plan to use the river in Franklin to power the town’s many mills. At the time, he was building a large home in Franklin, and locals found it an impressive structure. Babbitt lived in the large home with his wife and family, passing away years later.

Porch area of Lucknow, the Moultonborough estate of Thomas Plant in the late 1910s/early 1920s. The relaxing area undoubtedly had magnificent views. (Photo by George Perry, courtesy Castle in the Clouds)

Castles in the Lakes Region and northern New Hampshire sprang up in the late 1800s and early 1900s. Most of these estates mimicked the style of European castles, but the homes were not lacking in modernize amenities and décor. From Lucknow (Castle in the Clouds) in Moultonborough to Kimball Castle in Gilford to the Wentworth Castle in Jackson, the homes were unique.

North country residents General Marshall and Georgia Wentworth ordered a home built for their use in 1891. The estate was designed by William A. Bates, a New York architect using designs from Mrs. Wentworth. The Wentworth’s enjoyed life at their castle, until Marshall died in 1915. Mrs. Wentworth continued to live in the castle home until her death in 1930. Although unoccupied for some time, the once-glorious castle was rescued by Countess Mara de Bninska, a humanitarian and philanthropist. She bought the castle in 1959, modernized the home and repaired it as needed.

Many tourists and Lakes Regioners have heard of or visited Lucknow, today know as Castle in the Clouds in Moultonborough. Built around 1913, the home was the brainchild of Thomas Plant. After making his fortune in the shoe industry, Plant wanted to build and live in a unique house that would resemble a castle. The result was a 16-room Arts and Crafts style mansion, nestled in the Ossipee Mountain range with incredible views of Lake Winnipesaukee far below. Plant’s home, where he lived with his wife, Olive, sat high on a mountainside with unsurpassed views of the lake and mountains. It was constructed of cut stone and had every modern-day amenity such as state-of-the-art showers, central vacuuming, a cooled wine cellar, forced hot water heating and more. Today the Lakes Region Conservation Trust owns the property, and it is open for seasonal tours.

No mention of Lakes Region estates would be complete without mention of Kimball Castle in Gilford. Near the shores of Lake Winnipesaukee, the home of Benjamin Ames Kimball was constructed atop of hill with wonderful views. Like many other estates, it started as a summer home. Kimball was a railroad baron and had traveled to Europe. It was there he saw castles and determined to build a similar one at his summer home.

Kimball and his family lived the estate, which was constructed largely of granite. The ornate home even had rooms for servants. After Kimball’s death, and that of other family members, a remaining relative spent summers at the estate and left the property to a nonprofit.

Interior of Lucknow, circa 1910s/early 1920s when estate owners Thomas and Olive Plant lived and entertained guests from around the country and beyond. Today the home and grounds are known as Castle in the Clouds. This is how the home appeared in the late 1910s/early 1920s. (Photo by George Perry, courtesy Castle in the Clouds)

The Schrafft family were the wealthy owners of a famed candy company. They came to the area, according to “Squam” by Rachel Carley, and built a home in the Squam Lake region.

Robert Herman Otto Schulz (of Boston) and his wife, Louise Schrafft, named their summer home Indian Carry after a supposed Indian trail on the land. The couple’s estate had seven buildings, including the large home as well as a boathouse and bunkhouse.

Most likely Louise Schrafft’s family visited the summer home and fell in love with the area as well. Her brother, William Schrafft, and his wife built nearby and enjoyed a home with breathtaking views. The home was called Chimney Pots and was designed in a chalet style, likely large and well furnished.

Other Schrafft family cottages were Lochland, later to be purchased by television broadcaster William S. Paley (Frank Sinatra and other Rat Packers were said to be among the guests to the home) and the former Sunset House (inn). Benjamin Moore paint chairman Livingston Moore once owned the property as well.

In nearby Tamworth, an old Boston family built a summer cottage in the 1890s. Elliott Channing Clarke began to buy and consolidate small farms, which he built into one large country estate called Great Hill Farm. A successful engineer, Clarke added on to a one-and-a-half story, circa 1790s home. The estate had gaming tables, beautiful furniture, and big-game trophies from his hunting expeditions.

Lucknow, sitting high atop a mountain. It was the Moultonborough estate of Thomas Plant. Today the estate is known as Castle in the Clouds. This is how the home appeared in the late 1910s/early 1920s. (Photo by George Perry, courtesy Castle in the Clouds)

According to “Summer Cottages in the White Mountains – The Architecture of Leisure and Recreation 1870 to 1930” by Bryant F. Tolles, Jr., among the first houses built with the purpose of becoming a summer home in the Squam Lake Region was that of engineer William Norton. The Norton’s loved the Squam area and bought land to build a home. “Squam” by Rachel Carley, relates that it was the custom to build summer homes away from the lakes and ponds in the late 1800s. This was because people thought insects around water bodies carried illness. Thus, the Norton’s built a cottage near the top of Shepard Hill, which gave them great views of the lake and mountains.

Friends of the Norton’s soon followed to the Shepard Hill Area. One visitor, John Nicolay, was private secretary to Abraham Lincoln and later a marshal of the U.S. Supreme Court. The Nicolay family also loved the area. The cottage Nicolay built for his family’s summer use was called Tannenruch. The property remained in the Nicolay family until the death of John’s daughter, artist, and writer Helen Nicolay.

Occasionally, a famous person lived permanently in the Lakes Region after enjoying a summer vacation in the area. Actor Claude Rains was one who had settled in the area; he was well known in the 1930s and 1940s as a character actor in the movies. He was a famous movie star in his time, known for his role as Inspector Renault in the 1942 film classic, “Casablanca”. In his later years, he resided in Sandwich, New Hampshire.

When Rains and his wife sent their daughter to camp in New Hampshire, they were introduced to the Lakes Region, according to written accounts. A family friend who resided in Sandwich each summer invited the Rains family to visit.

The couple relocated to New Hampshire, because it was said Rains missed the country life when he had to be elsewhere. Eventually, Rains approached a local real estate agent about finding a home in the Sandwich area, and the sale of a house took place in the early 1960s.

The Rains family modernized their home somewhat, but every effort was made to maintain the original style. Rains believed in keeping the integrity of historic houses and barns. The kitchen was updated, and he had a small porch enclosed, and an icehouse turned into an art studio. The family took pride in the yard, planting lilacs, magnolias, hydrangeas, and crabapple trees. Claude Rains enjoyed his time in the area and lived happily, passing away in the 1960s.

Wineries are Great Places to Unwind

Hermit Woods Winery and Sweet Mercy Kitchen, located at 72 Main Street in Meredith.

By Mark Okrant

Americans love wine. Look around in any quality sit-down restaurant, and there are likely to be dozens of people enjoying a glass. According to 2023 data, there were 11,691 wineries in the United States, and that number has been growing at a 3 to 4 percent rate annually. Nationwide, an estimated one-third of the US adult population drinks wine. Not surprisingly, California is the leader in wineries, wine production, and consumption. How did we reach this point? The truth is that production of wine dates back many millennia.

The oldest-known winery was discovered in a cave in Vayots Dzor, Armenia. Dated to 4100 BCE, the site contained a wine press, fermentation vats, jars, and cups. Amazingly, the oldest evidence of wine cultivation was found in what today is the country of Georgia, where grape wine production dates back even further to 6000 BCE. Other early sites include Persia (5000 BCE), Greece (4500 BCE), Armenia (4100 BCE), and Sicily (4000 BCE). However, China (7000 BCE) has the earliest claim for producing a fermented alcoholic beverage consisting of rice, honey, and fruit.

During ancient times, the Greeks and Romans coupled alcohol consumption with their religious practices, as ancient Greeks worshiped Dionysus, while the Roman god of wine was Bacchus. The consumption of ritual wine was also prevalent among the early Hebrews, then adopted subsequently by Christians. Centuries later, beginning with the voyages of Columbus, grape culture and wine-making were transported from the Old World to the New. European grape varieties were first brought to what is now Latin America by the Spanish conquistadors. Succeeding waves of immigrants, particularly in the 19th and early 20th centuries, imported French, Italian, and German varieties of grape.

During the late 19th century, a devastating insect-borne phylloxera blight attacked vineyards throughout Europe. It was soon found that Native American vines were immune to the pest; thus began a practice of grafting European grapevines to American rootstocks to protect vineyards from the insect. The first US vineyard and commercial winery was established in 1799 by Kentucky State Statute. However, Virginia is generally regarded as the birthplace of American wine. With more than 300 vineyards and wineries, Thomas Jefferson, one of our founding fathers, was particularly passionate about wine and made numerous attempts to cultivate European grape varieties at his estate in Monticello, Virginia. It was not until the early 19th century that American wine truly began to flourish.

Today, wine in this country is associated with the northern California counties of Napa, Sonoma, and Mendocino. This region produces a wide variety of wines, from inexpensive to high-quality blends. Most of the wine production in California is based on Old World grape varieties and their wine-growing regions cultivate specific grapes that have become closely identified with them.

Brotherhood Wines in Washingtonville, New York is credited with being the oldest ongoing vineyard in the US. John Jaques began growing native grapes in the backyard of his store as early as 1824. By 1835, he had established a large vineyard and was selling his grapes in the New York City area. As the price of grapes dropped, Jaques converted to wine production and released his first commercial vintage in 1839 under the label ‘Blooming Grove Winery.’

Here in the Granite State, there are an estimated thirty-eight wineries. Based upon a recent census, seven of those are situated in the Lakes Region. These are:

• Gilmanton Winery and Restaurant, located at 528 Meadow Road in Gilmanton

• Black Bear Vineyard, located at 289 New Road in Salisbury

• Haunting Whisper Vineyards and Spirits, located at 77 Oak Ridge Road in Danbury

• Crazy Cat Winery and Café, located at 365 Lake Street in Bristol

• Whippletree Winery, located at 372 Turkey Street in Tamworth

• Front Four Cellars of NH, located at 13 Railroad Street in Wolfeboro

• Hermit Woods Winery and Sweet Mercy Kitchen, located at 72 Main Street in Meredith

In an effort to better understand the issues associated with operating a winery in central New Hampshire, we interviewed Bob Manley, one of three partners—along with vintner Ken Hardcastle and Chuck Lawrence—who founded Hermit Woods in Meredith in 2011. We asked Manley why he and his partners elected to produce wines that do not utilize grapes. Manley informed us that the classic grape used worldwide in wine production is the Vitis vinifera. “This is a Mediterranean grape; it doesn’t grow in New Hampshire due to the region’s extreme winter cold. For wineries in the north and east to use those grapes would necessitate an enormous expense to import them from around the world.” He went on to inform us that there is a North American grape, the Vitis labrusca, but it does not produce quality wines. What most wine in the Northeast is produced from are French or Minnesota hybrids—crosses between Vitis vinifera and Vitis labrusca, however, there are a few producers that have successfully grown and produced some quality wines from the North American Vitis labrusca grapes, notably, the Niagara and Catawba grapes, to name a couple of the more common ones. 

Manley told us, “The conditions here in the Northeast are less than ideal for growing hybrid grapes,  resulting in many (though not all) wineries having to use chemicals to combat the effects of high humidity, which can lead to mildew, disease, and local pest issues. Any grapes that could grow in this region would necessitate using chemical sprays to prevent insect infestations. Those local wineries that choose to produce grape-based wine face a choice of importing California, Chile, or European grapes and processing them here. Otherwise, they would need to purchase juices produced from grapes grown in those same three areas, then process them locally into wine.”

Instead, Hermit Woods opted to produce quality wines using fruits that are indigenous to this region: apples, Aronia berries, autumn berries, blackberries, black currants, black pepper, black raspberries, wild blueberries, cardamoms, crab apples, corianders, cranberries,  daylilies, elderberries, ginger, green tomatoes, honeyberries, hops, juniper berries, kiwi berries, knot weeds, peaches, pears, plums, quinces, raspberries, rhubarb, rose hips, staghorn sumac, and strawberries. As we talked, Manley extolled the ability of vintner Hardcastle to produce wines from fruit that drink like a cabernet, merlot, pinot noir, and other traditional wines. He uses whole fruits that are gently hand-processed, with minimal to zero chemical adjustments or additions. After blending, their wine is aged in oak barrels. Asked to name the Hermit Woods Winery’s most popular wines, Manley cited the very fruity Petite Blue, the barrel-aged Petite Blue Reserve, and their semi-dry Winnipesaukee Rose’.

One of the most positive aspects of this and other wineries within the region is the strong ties that have been established with the surrounding community. These businesses compensate their employees well. Also, a practice we need to see more of: wineries work closely with local farmers, the arts, and area businesses.

Whittier Covered Bridge in Ossipee

Whittier Covered Bridge

By Lee Caldwell

New Hampshire’s covered bridge No. 46 is the Whittier Covered Bridge, spanning the Bearcamp River in West Ossipee. Considered an Ossipee historic monument, the bridge is of a single-span Paddleford truss design with an overall length of 144 feet and a clear span of 110 feet (as measured between the abutments). It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1984 and is one of New Hampshire’s surviving 19th century covered bridges.

The Paddleford truss was introduced by Peter Paddleford (1785-1859), a bridge-builder from Littleton. A modification of the Long truss, “Paddleford tried to make the braces work in both compression and tension by having the braces lap over all of the frame members. He tried to use wood like people later used iron rods. It’s hard to make a tension joint with wood unless you have a lot of distance to do it in. It is complicated joinery,” according to Jan Lewandoski, a Vermont timber-framer and preservationist.

The bridge (or bridges) upon this site have had a tumultuous past. As early as 1796, deeds refer to a bridge  called the Great Bridge here. The bridge prior to the Whittier Bridge was washed away in the great flood of 1869.

The Whittier Covered Bridge was said to have been built around 1870. It played an important part in the Carroll County transportation system during the 19th century and into the first half of the 20th. Heavy use and the ravages of time and nature that the bridge received were a contributing factor to the many renovations and repairs that have had to be made over the years.

A pair of laminated arches were made to strengthen it. After the 1936 flood, the abutments were reinforced with concrete buttresses. The lower chords of the trusses and the floor were rebuilt in the 1940s. Later neglect led to such serious deterioration that the bridge had to be closed to traffic in 1981.

In 1982, Gordon Pope, a longtime summer resident of Ossipee, decided to restore the bridge as a memorial to his late wife. His gift, supplemented by gifts from friends, was matched by the State of New Hampshire. The restoration, done by Graton Associates of Ashland, included a new downstream lower chord, the replacement of rotten timbers in both upper chords and both arches, and a new wooden shingled roof, among other repairs. The bridge reopened in 1983.

On May 7, 2024, the New Hampshire Preservation Alliance gave the Town of Ossipee the 2024 Preservation Achievement Award for the rehabilitation and preservation of the historic 1870-built Whittier Covered Bridge.

Looking out over the Bearcamp River

“The Town of Ossipee, its citizens advisory group and its engineering and construction team executed a complex, three phase plan over 14 years to restore and revive this rare single-span Paddleford truss design bridge. Although the nearby hotel where poet John Greenleaf Whittier spent five summers is long gone, his memory remains strong in this picturesque setting,” stated the NH Preservation Alliance in making the award.

In a press release from the Town of Ossipee, town officials stated, “Every surviving 19th century bridge is precious. This one, built in 1870  to replace a span from 1791, is both an engineering marvel and a cultural marvel and a cultural monument. It is a rare example of a single-span Paddleford truss — a NH innovation regarded as the most sophisticated wooden truss design of the 19th century.”

Continuing, the town added, “The bridge was severely damaged in the floods of 1936, bypassed by Route 16 in 1955, renovated in 1982 and closed again in 1989. After the decaying structure was almost washed downstream in 2005, the town cabled it to a tree, sought engineering help and recruited a citizens advisory committee.”

Using a combination of federal, state, and local funding and moving the bridge to an adjacent field for repairs, the team completed extensive repairs in 2016. In 2021, with additional funding, the abutments were repaired and the massive Whittier Covered Bridge was put back into place. It is now limited to foot traffic only.

A recent visit to the bridge on Nudd Road (located just off Route 25) in late summer was a peaceful outing. Because the bridge is open for foot traffic only, it has picnic tables strategically placed for those who desire to sit and soak up the ambience. Late-summer wildflowers were blooming. The current of the mostly clear, tea-colored Bearcamp River was moving slowly along on this particular day — a far cry from the raging floods it had to endure. On the far side of the bridge was a sandy shore with the coarse sand looking ideal for wading. Some of the trees over-hanging the river had started turning their leaves, and the overhanging branches were reflected in the water. A faint odor of creosote emanated from the bridge’s timbers. A watchful, lone silhouetted raptor perched high on a bare tree, letting out periodic cries. One could almost hear the ghost of John Greenleaf Whittier composing a poem.

Coffeehouses and Roasters: a time-honored tradition

By Mark Okrant

After nearly fifty-four years of marriage, I can honestly say that my wife and I disagree over very few things. One of those, however, is coffee. While I enjoy an occasional glass of decaffeinated iced coffee, she drinks five cups of the hot stuff every day.

Admittedly, coffee has had a very good run since its origin, believed to be in Ethiopia, prior to the fifteenth century. Throughout much of the coffeehouse’s early history, its development was focused on the Middle East. Damascus was the home to several of the first coffeehouses. By the fifteenth century, coffeehouses had appeared at Mecca in what today is Saudi Arabia. Early sixteenth-century locations were in Istanbul—at that time the capital of the Ottoman empire—and in Bagdad, in the Fertile Crescent. Coffeehouses became popular meeting places where men gathered to drink coffee, play chess and backgammon, and be entertained. Subsequent coffeehouses were opened in Cairo and Persia.

The earliest European coffeehouses were established during the seventeenth century in Venice, Italy, Vienna, Austria, and London, England By 1675, there were more than 3,000 coffeehouses in England. These were accessible to all men, regardless of social status. Here, ideas of equality and republicanism were spawned. Finally, during the middle of the seventeenth century, coffeehouses were diffused to the Americas.

According to the National Coffee Association (NCA), 67 percent of adult Americans drink coffee every day, with 36 percent of coffee drinkers consuming three to five cups each day. Meanwhile, according to the NCA, an eye-opening 51 percent of these coffee drinkers purchase theirs from a coffee shop at least one time per week—which brings us to our topic.

A coffeehouse, coffee shop, or café is an establishment that serves various types of coffee, espresso, latte, americano, and cappuccino. Some coffeehouses serve tea, and cold beverages, such as iced coffee or tea, and non-caffeinated drinks. Also, on some menus are pastries, breads, cakes, muffins, and donuts. A number of these establishments are of the single, mom-and-pop variety, while others are franchised businesses. Coffeehouses are much more than a place to buy and consume a cup of coffee. Many of the best ones serve as “centers of social interaction,” wherein writers write, readers read, thinkers think, internet users use the internet, and small groups gather to entertain one another or discuss the hot political topic of the day.

During the early 1950s, coffeehouses served as the home of the Beatnik culture; later, during the 1960s, they were places to listen to some of the best folk music at that time. In 2002, Brownstones Coffee of Amityville, New York opened its first location as a breakfast-oriented coffeehouse. As that model increased in popularity, the trend grew in the form of Starbucks and similar franchises.    

The Lakes Region is not unaffected by the quest for a good cup of coffee and some accompanying food. Here is a partial list of some favorites. We offer this sampling—in no particular order—as a starting place, not as a suggestion that you end your personal search here.

Wayfarer Coffee Roaster Lakeport Wayfarer Coffee

626 Main Street, Laconia 781 Union Avenue, Suite 2, Laconia

This pair of establishments is owned and operated by former Seattle residents Karen and Reuben Bassett, and their local partner Ben Bullerwell. When the first of these businesses opened in 2015, it was in response to their perceived need to bring quality coffee to the region. Today, they are known for their coffee, sourdough toasts, and fine pastries. This team operates the Wayfarer Marketplace which offers local beer and wines, farm produce, and has a section for local artisans to present their crafts.

Seven Suns Café

21 Railroad Avenue, Wolfeboro

This establishment specializes in the delectable combination of good coffee—cappuccino, Americano, tea latte, and Affogato (espresso over ice cream)—as well as a variety of delicious crepes.

Mellow Moose Coffee House

136 Daniel Webster Highway, Meredith

This establishment offers great coffee, espresso, lattes, chia lattes, teas, and some of the area’s best hot chocolate. It serves made-to-order breakfast sandwiches and a daily quiche, as well as soup, salad, and sandwiches for a light lunch.

Identity Coffee

312 Daniel Webster Highway, Meredith

This establishment offers something extra—excellent views of Lake Winnipesaukee. Coffee and lattes are the specialties of the house. One highlight for those with dietary concerns—they offer gluten-free breads and bakery items.

Cup and Crumb

1040 Whittier Hwy, Moultonborough

This establishment is a coffee shop and bakery combination. Coffee specialties include a range of espressos. Each day, freshly baked pastries, muffins, and breakfast sandwiches are made on site.

Lucas Roasting Company (roasters)

7 King Street, Wolfeboro

This establishment is a coffee roasting company that regards itself as a community—linking coffee farmers, to roasters, to baristas, to consumers. This establishment services residential consumers as well as businesses of various sizes. Orders are met with quick turn-around, as coffee and espresso will be roasted, delivered, and shipped within a 24-to-48-hour window.

Harmony Coffee House 

21 Central Avenue, Wolfeboro

This establishment specializes in atmosphere, highlighted by a cozy fireplace. It offers coffee, espresso, latte, mocha, cappuccino, americano, cortado, hot chocolate, teas, and a variety of cold brews. All-day breakfasts and lunches are served.

Rise and Shine Coffee House

400 Main Street, Wakefield

This establishment offers a full range of coffees, as well as teas, hot chocolate, various iced drinks, and five varieties of smoothies. Quick breakfasts and pastries are also available.

The coffeehouse is a time-honored tradition. Like their predecessors, coffeehouses in the Lakes Region have become much more than a place to sample quality coffee products and good food. These are places where young couples meet, businesspersons make significant deals, political ideas are spawned, and a considerable amount of contemplation occurs. If you have not already done so, head right over to a coffeehouse on this list or choose one of your own. You might just meet up with my wife.

Ghostly Lakes Region Tales

The tombstone of Esther 'Granny Hicks' Prescott Hyde, the 'Witch of New Hampton'.

By Kathi Caldwell-Hopper

The Lakes Region has many tales of olden-day witches and creatures that go bump in the night. Ghosts are said to roam the hills and valleys of the Lakes Region; many of the tales are not well known but are repeated more often as Halloween approaches.

Such is the tale of Granny Hicks of New Hampton, New Hampshire. Long ago – Granny was the unfortunate victim of a witch hunt. She was knitting one day and realized she needed more yarn to finish a project. She went to a neighbor’s home to ask to borrow some wool, but the woman slammed the door in her face. At a time when people could be labeled as a witch or sorcerer simply for being a bit different, Granny Hicks was known in the town for being an eccentric busybody. Her neighbor wanted nothing to do with Hicks. It was unfortunate that the next day, the neighbor’s child became ill and died, according to “Myths and Mysteries of New Hampshire” by Matthew P. Mayo. The townspeople believed Hicks had cast a spell on her neighbor’s family.

Hicks was shunned from that time onward and endured local children throwing rocks and taunting her. A group of men in a drunken stupor destroyed her home. In revenge, Granny Hicks predicted their deaths. Although she soon died (probably from old age) the men all met their demise as Granny had predicted.

In the Ossipee area, a frightening tale of murder tells of ghostly happenings. The story relates that a man named Archie killed everyone in a hamlet of the town. Once his terrible act was completed, he threw the bodies into a pond and then hanged himself outside his house. Archie’s ghost, unable to rest, is seen walking in the area to this day.

Another Ossipee tale tells of a little girl named Polly who was struck and killed by a train in the area. Her distressing cries can be heard in the nearby woods at night.

Many would be surprised to learn that the gentle Shakers of Canterbury Shaker Village believed in spiritual encounters. The village was the home of the believers in Mother Ann Lee’s religion, with members commonly called Shakers. Many men, women, and children lived and worked at Canterbury Shaker Village in the 1800s and into the 1900s. The peaceful religious group was known to show compassion to all.

It is less well known that the Shakers believed in ghosts, or “spirits,” as they called them. While many Christian beliefs find the idea of ghosts or a spirit world to be off-limits or downright absurd, to the Shakers, it all made sense.

There are many written accounts of Shakers being visited by spirits of departed fellow members and others. A Shaker member wrote, “We have frequently been visited by a tribe of Indians (spirits of Indians), who used to live in this country, and whose spirits still come back here occasionally.”

Séances, along with ghostly sightings, were common among the Shakers. In the 1800s and early 1900s, if the neighbors of the Canterbury Shakers had known about the practice of calling forth the spirits of the dead, they would likely have been quite distressed. Séances were looked upon as akin to witchcraft.

For the Shakers, however, ghost sightings and calling upon spirits were simply ways to communicate with those who had passed to heaven. If one believed in an afterlife, it stood to reason those in the afterworld might wish to speak with loved ones on Earth. If thought of in this way, ghosts seem to make perfect sense, and it is much less spirits.

None of the Halloween creatures and ghosts can frighten people as much as a witch. Tales of the powerful creatures said to be in collusion with the devil strike fear, especially at Halloween.

During the 1700s and 1800s, any woman who was a bit odd or eccentric could be labeled a witch. At the height of the witch-hunting hysteria, a woman had only to anger a neighbor for the cry of “witch!” to spread in a community.

New Hampshire had its own witch hunts and folk tales of evil women and men who frightened and did their terrible deeds to locals in the 1700s and 1800s.

One woman labeled a witch was said to live in Meredith Center and was known only as Mrs. T. Her main crime in the 1800s seemed to be her habit of borrowing things from her neighbors on a regular basis and never returning the favor.

One day, she asked to borrow butter from a neighboring woman who had none to lend. Mrs. T did not like to be refused in her borrowing and went away, muttering curses and threats to the woman.

Perhaps to oblige Mrs. T, the neighbor set about her usual butter churning because she had no butter herself. She worked at the butter churn for hours but could not achieve results. Finally, the butter churner, suspecting witchcraft, said, “If Mrs. T is in that churn, I will get her out.” She dropped a red-hot hook from the fireplace into the butter churn, and soon butter was produced.

Mrs. T’s children ran to the woman in the neighborhood and related that their mother was very ill. Mrs. T died soon after, and it was said she had a terrible burn on her neck in the shape of a hook, just like the one the butter-churning neighbor took from the fireplace.

According to Eva A. Speare, author of “NH Folk Tales,” a witch once lived in Plymouth, New Hampshire. Her tale was told by a local hermit named “Old Dr. Dearborn” who lived in a small cottage in a remote part of Plymouth. He was sick and asked for food and medicine from his nearest neighbors. Local girls were responsible for carrying food and supplies to Dr. Dearborn.

One day, as the children visited the hermit, he told them of his encounter with a witch. He said that when he was a teenager living in Campton, his father owned a fine horse, which the hermit often rode.

When riding the horse, the hermit passed the home of a woman, Dolly, who was said to be a witch. Suddenly, a black cat ran from Dolly’s porch and leaped to the horse’s neck.

The horse stopped in its tracks and refused to move, even when the rider used a whip. The black cat, also feeling the whip, clung to the horse’s neck. Eventually, the cat ran off, and the boy went home.

The next day, when the boy went to check on the horse, it didn’t have a mark on it, and it seemed like its usual healthy self. But as for Dolly, a neighbor soon arrived and related that she was nearly dead, “covered with welts and bruises and scarcely breathing from fatigue.”

The hermit finished his tale by saying, “You see, I almost killed the old witch when she turned into a black cat and bewitched my horse.”

If witches strike fear into our hearts, walking through a cemetery on a dark night can set the stage for a ghostly or bewitching visitation. A New England cemetery, with lichen-covered stones leaning this way and that in the ground, can cause even the bravest of people to become fearful.

Inspiration Point on Little Round Top in Bristol. (Tom Caldwell Photo)

In the Bristol area, on an autumn’s day, as a teenager took a walk in the woods, his destination Inspiration Point on a hill above the town. Hiking up a trail, he knew the path by heart, having taken it many times over the years. It was a blustery fall day, with leaves blowing from the trees, a bright blue sky, and brilliant sunshine. It was a perfect day for a fall hike.

Once he reached the top of the mountain, he sat quietly and gazed over the town of Bristol far below. Inspiration Point is an open-air, mountain-top area with wooden benches and a large wooden cross for outdoor ceremonies and services. He had the place to himself and became lost in meditation.

After a time, he felt he was not alone and glanced to one side to see a woman sitting quietly on a bench. He said her clothing looked odd, as if from another time, and she appeared lost in thought. They did not speak or make eye contact, but he felt uncomfortable and decided it was time to leave. Walking towards the footpath, he glanced back and realized the woman was gone. A chill ran through him because he knew she would have had no time to walk away, and there was but one path down the mountain; she had not passed him but seemed to disappear into thin air. Obviously, his hike down the mountain was taken at almost a run!

Fear of cemeteries was not always as intense because, in the early days of central New Hampshire settlement, people buried their loved ones on their own land. Towns were few and far between, and people made family graveyards near their homesteads. There was less fear of a cemetery where well-known loved ones were buried since those loved ones were a mother, father, grandparents, or a sibling.

Between the early 1800s and 1920s, three types of stones were most common: marble, used mostly around the mid-1800s, and soapstone and slate, used before marble became popular.

The 1600 and 1700 gravestone carvers in New Hampshire also worked as woodworkers or blacksmiths. One central New Hampshire gravestone carver of some fame was a man named “Hookster,” a religious revivalist. His method for passing judgment on the deceased was unusual. Those he considered in line for redemption had smiling faces carved on their gravestones, while the “unawakened” received a scowling face on their stone.

If you have lived in the Lakes Region for any amount of time, you may have heard about the supposed ghostly encounters at the Alton Town Hall in downtown Alton. There have been reports of heavy footsteps, furniture moving independently, doors opening, and voices talking when no one is in the building.

No End to Wonderful Fall Hiking Opportunities

Beaver ponds with views of the mountains beyond as viewed from the Zealand Trail. (Tom Caldwell Photo)

By Thomas P. Caldwell

Autumn is a great time to do some hiking, with cooler temperatures and fewer insects to mar the experience. Early fall also provides beautifully colored foliage, adding to the attraction of the natural landscape, waterfalls, and vistas.

Central and Northern New Hampshire offer plenty of hiking opportunities for people of all abilities, and there are a number of day hikes that make it easy to get out in nature and take in all that wonderful scenery. From quick-and-easy treks to more challenging trails, the choices are abundant.

A good place to start is the trail system at The Castle in the Clouds in Moultonborough. Maintained by the Lakes Region Conservation Trust, there is the easy Shannon Brook Trail, which passes several waterfalls on the 0.7-mile path — perfect for introducing young children to the joys of hiking.

One of the waterfalls along the Shannon Brook Trail in Moultonborough. (Tom Caldwell Photo)

For more of a challenge, the property also has moderately difficult trails to the 1,801-foot Bald Knob peak, Turtleback Mountain (2,192’), Mount Roberts (2,566’), Faraway Mountain (2,872’), Mount Shaw (2,989’) and Black Snout Mountain (2,664’).

Hiking in Wonalancet, between Sandwich and Tamworth, provides a quiet atmosphere with not as many other people on the trails. The Brook Path is an easy 2.1-mile flat trail that follows the Wonalancet River through a forest of hemlocks and northern hardwoods. The stream has many small cascades and pools, ending with a wooden dam.

Nearby is the Mount Mexico Trail, a 5.2-mile moderate loop that takes an average of three hours to complete. There are several stream crossings, and portions of the trail are not as well-marked, so it’s easy to wander off but just as easy to find one’s way back onto the trail. During early fall, the leaf cover protects hikers from the heat, but when the temperatures abate and the leaves have fallen, there is the benefit of having better views. Good footwear is recommended.

Parts of the Zealand Trail are rocky with lots of tree roots, so wearing good hiking boots are recommended to avoid sprained ankles. (Tom Caldwell Photo)

Hiking boots are also recommended for the 2.9-mile Zealand Trail in the White Mountains. While the trail is rated moderate, with much of it running along the bed of an old logging railroad, there are sections where the hiker has to scramble over small boulders and along dry, rocky stream beds where a twisted ankle could turn a pleasant trip into misfortune. The attraction of the Zealand Trail is its passage through areas with flat rocks alongside the Zealand River, where one can enjoy swimming and sunbathing; beaver ponds with views of the mountains beyond; and, at the top, an Appalachian Mountain Club hut that offers spectacular views of the White Mountains.

It is possible to extend the Zealand Trail hike by continuing on the Ethan Pond Trail to Thoreau Falls, but that means a trip greater than 10 miles. An alternative is to extend the trip with an overnight stay at the AMC Zealand Hut and make the Thoreau Falls hike on a second day. With reservations, the AMC will provide an evening meal for those staying at the hut.

***

Hitting the Shannon Brook trail in early September, the leaves had not yet started to turn colors, but a brisk breeze warned that it would not be long before foliage season would be here. Nonetheless, there was a steady stream of hikers — singles, couples, and families — making their way along the trail and stepping off the path to get a better look at the various falls, with names like Roaring Falls, Twin Falls, Whittier Falls, The Cascades, Emerald Pool Falls, Bridal Veil Falls, and Falls of Song.

The trail is wide and gently descends, making it easy to walk in either direction. There is only a steep climb for 0.2 miles by the lower bridge.

Most of the side paths to the waterfalls are equally easy, but reaching some of the falls requires a bit more dexterity, and getting back up would be a challenge for some.

The fall colors are starting to appear alongside the Zealand Trail in this view. (Tom Caldwell Photo)

It was mid-September when we took the Zealand Trail and, being farther north, there were already some signs of the coming foliage season. Peak foliage could not be more than a few weeks behind.

After a gentle incline, the trail became steeper, with a tangle of roots and boulders that required a slower pace. It was an 84-degree day, perfect for relaxation but not as great for scrambling over obstacles. However, the cool river running alongside the trail providing plenty of places to rest and recover, perhaps have a snack and rehydrate for the trail ahead.

Soon, it was back into full woods where there were occasional bursts of color. Despite the hot day, there were many hikers ascending and descending the trail. When the path leveled out on the old train bed, with the leaves providing some welcoming shade, it was easy to quickly recover from the more taxing portion of the trail.

Then the trail was skirting a large pond, partially dammed up by the beavers that were constantly making work for the trail crews, which have built wooden bridges over areas where the water has backed up. In the distance was a tree-lined hill with hints of color, and beyond that, a gray, flat-topped mountain. It was a place where it would not be unusual to see a moose cooling off in the water.

It took about 1.75 hours to reach the 2.3-mile mark where the A-Z Trail crossed, and a sign indicated that the AMC Zealand Hut was just 0.5 mile ahead. It was at that point that the trail began rising more steeply, and the final 0.1 mile was very steep, although supplied with stone steps to make it easier to navigate.

These are just some of the trails in the region that make for perfect fall hiking. The Appalachian Mountain Club and Lakes Region Conservation Trust have maps and guides to other equally good paths to follow, as well as directions to find them.

Happy trails!

Flying High at Morningside Flight Park

Assistant Manager Gisele Dierks of Morningside Flight Park picks up her hang-glider as she prepares to go to the top of the 450-foot launch site at the Charlestown facility. (Lee Caldwell Photo)

By Lee Caldwell

Nestled in the Connecticut River Valley in Charlestown, Morningside Flight Park is New Hampshire’s home for all things hang-gliding and paragliding. In addition to offering lessons and selling equipment, they have mountaintop zip-line tours and outdoor laser tag, plus camping and rustic cabins.

Upon arrival at the facility, two paragliders are sailing down the green hill on a gentle current of air. The paragliders are leaving from the 150-foot launch site and appear to be doing very well as each lands gracefully. A truck waits to carry them back up the hill for another launch.

Assistant Manager Gisele Dierks, nicknamed Gigi, is the daughter of one of the founders of the flight park. The site is a former dairy farm, and some remnants of the original buildings remain. Gigi shares that some pilots from the 1970s approached farmer Phil Haynes regarding the use of his hill. His response: “Sure, as long as you teach me.”

One can only wonder what the cows thought about the human birds swooping down the hillside.

Gigi’s father, Jeff Nicolay, started working with Phil and they operated the flight park together for almost 40 years. In 2011, after the deaths of both the original founders, Kitty Hawk Kites, based out of North Carolina, purchased the flight park, which today is celebrating its 50th year of operation.

Gigi explains the differences between paragliding (“uses all light, flexible materials”) and hang-gliding (“uses aircraft-grade metal and has a fixed wing.”) Other differences include seating: In paragliding, one sits upright in a comfortable sling-type seat. In hang-gliding, the pilot is horizontally suspended and hangs face-down. Hang-gliders typically fly in higher winds than paragliders, but they both can reach to the same heights and travel the same distances.

Hang-gliders, with their rigid metal structure and triangular-shaped wing, weigh around 50 pounds. Paragliders, with their more flexible materials, weigh about seven pounds, not including the harness set.

One gentleman passing by smilingly comments, “Seven pounds keeps you in the air.”

Whether they are flying a hang-glider or a paraglider, the pilots at Morningside Flight Park always fly with a reserve parachute for safety, in case of emergencies. Says Gigi, “The parachutes are attached to just the pilots in our harnesses, but we are attached to the wings, so all three of us (wing, chute, pilot) come down together.”

The flight park offers tandem hang-gliding. In tandem hang-gliding, the student (or participant) is hooked into the glider with the pilot. The glider designed specifically for tandems boasts a larger wing area for more lift and tricycle landing gear to simplify take-offs and landings. The tandem hang-glider is pulled into the air by an airplane and launched from the sky.

The cost for both a new hang-glider and a new paraglider is in the $4,000-$6,000 price range. All associated gear is extra.

The rules are the same for hang-gliding and paragliding, and like most flight parks, a rating (license) is required to fly solo. Proper training is essential for the sport.

A paraglider who launched from a 150-foot site above the field, lands safely at the bottom. (Lee Caldwell Photo)

Gigi shows the classroom where students start by learning the basics, including interpreting the all- important weather conditions and the mastering the safe airspace maps. For lessons, there is a hang-gliding simulator. Students must be at least 14-years-old to both take lessons and to fly tandem. According to Gigi, one 96-year-old flew tandem, and some folks in their 60s and 70s have taken paragliding lessons.

Gigi shows her hang-glider and then hops into a pickup truck with a special hitch for transporting hang-gliders. We zoom up, up, up a narrow, paved road past a pond, past the 150-foot launch site, past the 250-foot launch site, past some rustic cabins that are offered for rent (which are currently being renovated), past the fifth-oldest oak tree in New Hampshire (a 440-year-old behemoth called Grandmother), past a 380-year-old oak tree (called Grandfather), past rare and indigenous species of plants, to the top of the hill at the 450-foot launch site. A plaque commemorating Phil Haynes and Jeff Nicolay is located near the launch site.

The view, facing roughly westward, is spectacular. In the distance looms Mount Ascutney, a widely known ski peak in Vermont. Gigi comments that one of the challenging hang-gliding flights is to sail from Ascutney to Morningside Flight Park. There is a tradition that those first-timers who accomplish the flight are thrown in the pond for a celebratory swim.

She also affirms that the sunsets there are amazing and that, in the morning, the mist rising from the Connecticut River, just beyond the distant trees, is also beautiful.

At the top of the hill perches a small, white cabin called The Castle, which is available for rent. Its porch overlooks the valley below and the launch sites. Three wooded platform cabins are being renovated for use. There are spots for tents and campfire pits nestled among the trees. The 160-acre flight park borders on a land trust with hiking trails.

In the woods behind the uppermost launch site are the zip-lines and zip-line platforms. The former offers two tours: a basic Mountain Top tour (perfect for youth) and the longer, more exciting, Superman tour, with a 1,100-foot run.

Laser tag is played in the woods. Described as “paintball without the sting, mess, or environmental impact,” laser tag has guides taking participants through a variety of games in a one- to two-hour period, using the Tippman brand state-of-the-art laser tag system.

Gigi encourages reservations for all activities.

For more information, call 603-542-4416, or visit www.flymorningside.com to book online. Morningside Flight Park is located at 357 Morningstar Lane in Charlestown.

Cruising Squam During Foliage Season

Squam Lake Natural Science Center’s Discover Squam cruise with Captain Dave.

Story and Photos by Kathi Caldwell-Hopper

During foliage season, Squam Lake is beautiful. The weather is warm, the landscape breathtaking in colors of red, gold and orange, and the lake water sparkling. It is the perfect time for a cruise to look for loons and eagles and to enjoy being on Squam Lake.

A Squam Lakes Natural Science Center lake cruise is a great way to experience Squam Lake. Those who want to take a cruise can do so by calling ahead to choose a day and time and then arrive about 20 minutes before your boat is scheduled to depart.

Parking at the Squam Lakes Natural Science Center designated lot (on Science Center Road) is convenient. From there it is a short walk across the street to the dock area, where the canopied pontoon boats await.

My daughter, Megan, and I took the Discover Squam pontoon boat cruise on a breezy, sunny September weekday. We opted for the 11 a.m. time slot and were excited to get out on Squam Lake and see some iconic spots that make the area beloved to so many.

The pontoon boat we were scheduled to be on was driven by Captain Dave, a member of the Center’s staff, was our narrator and driver. We boarded the boat and took our seats in the roomy interior, protected by a cover to keep out any direct sun or rain. Luckily for us, the day was sunny and clear, and while it was actually hot on land, we prudently brought jackets, knowing the weather could be much windier on the open water.

The cruise filled with vacationers and locals who had the same idea as us: to look for loons and other wildlife from the vantage point of the boat and also to see some of the places where the famous movie “On Golden Pond” was filmed.

We started our cruise right on schedule and Captain Dave began by telling us we would head first to Little Squam Lake. A natural channel connects Big and Little Squam, and we marveled at how modest in size Little Squam is, although Captain Dave told us it is 410 acres. Only a small number of businesses are on Little Squam and most of the cottages are privately owned.

Near the entrance to Big Squam, Captain Dave pointed out a spot where Norman, one of the characters in the movie “On Golden Pond,” was filmed gassing up his boat.

Sailing on Squam Lake.

Then it was on to Big Squam, where we went through Colton Cove, one of 20 coves in Squam Lake. Captain Dave told us the older homes on Squam were built closer to the water’s edge, and most had boathouses. He added that rules have changed over time, and the newer homes must be built 50 feet from the shoreline. (In my opinion, one of the best things about the cruise is the chance to see some of the homes at the entrance to the lake, with friendly folks pausing in their yard work to wave and nod hello.)

As our tour began in earnest, Captain Dave told us a big rule: If we “see something, say something.” He was referring to our quest for loon sightings and other wildlife, meaning if we see an animal, we should let him know so all passengers can share the viewing.

He pointed out Red Hill in the distance, explaining how the lake was formed by glaciers, and added that most of the beaches on Squam were man-made.

Other facts include 33 named Big Squam Lake islands, and some are great spots to look for loons and bald eagles. Dave added that a good way to discern a loon from other birds is if their beak is parallel to the water, it is a loon.

One of my favorite parts of the cruise/tour was a look at Potato Island, which has a pretty seasonal home peeking from the trees. I could imagine spending a summer on the island, waking to the early-morning sound of loons calling to one another across the still water and the gentle lapping of waves on the shoreline. I think it would be a lovely way to spend a summer - at least with a boat to reach shore now and then!

As we continued on, Captain Dave told us we were looking at Chocorua Island, fondly called Church Island. It was on this island that the first boy’s camp began. Dave asked us to imagine coming to Squam in the 1880s. This was when and where Dartmouth college student, Ernest Balch, started the first-ever summer camp.

Camp Chocorua was the summer home of boys who had to love camp life or face a bleak summer of making campfires, hauling wood, sleeping under the stars, and swimming in the lake. Most boys loved it, and the camp grew over the years. These days, it is the site of a beautiful outdoor cathedral where summer church services and weddings are held.

As we headed on, one of the cruise passengers spotted a loon family off Mink Island. There were binoculars on board, and we were all invited to use a pair to get a clearer view. The binoculars were appreciated and gave us a better look at things (loons included) during our trip.

One of the modest-sized islands on Squam Lake.

Captain Dave shared a lot of information, such as that loons start to turn a dusty gray color during the fall foliage season. He also mentioned there were eight nests on Squam Lake and relayed information about the loon’s yearly calendar. Loons return to the area after ice-out in approximately April and nest in June. Chicks are born in July and often migrate with their loon parents to Sheep Island. He mentioned that should we be out on Squam, take note of and respect the orange signs, alerting everyone that we would are near a loon nest area and that it would be important to stay well back.

As we drove by Rockywold Deephaven Camps, Dave told us fun facts about camping there long ago. Families lived in cottages with refrigerators cooled by huge ice blocks. The ice was cut on Squam Lake during the winter and stored for summer use. It is interesting to note that the ice harvests still occur each winter.

We passed views of Rattlesnake, (where we could spot hikers high on the mountainside), Five Finger Point, Jumping Rock, and even an eagle in a tree.

Of course, no cruise would be complete without a glimpse of the spot from “On Golden Pond,” known as Purgatory Rock, where two of the main characters crashed their boat. Captain Dave shared some information about the scene and the area that I did not previously know.

We stopped to see an eagle near Three Sisters Island, and not far from there, we saw three loons.

We returned to the docking area all too soon and said a fond farewell to Captain Dave, who had given us such an informative, fun tour.

For Squam Lakes Natural Science Center’s (SLNSC) lake cruises, call 603-968-7194 or visit www.nhnature.org.

Making Music On The Golden Pond

John Davidson records a vocal track for his new single during a session at Squam Sound in Ashland. (Tom Caldwell Photo)

By Thomas P. Caldwell

Squam Lake became famous as the setting for the film “On Golden Pond” featuring Katherine Hepburn and father-daughter actors Henry and Jane Fonda, but it is not just actors who are attracted to the area. Musicians ranging from Rebecca Turmel, Jim Yeager, Jenna Rice, Audrey Drake, Peter Lawler, and Bob McCarthy to Carly Simon also have found it to be the perfect place to record their music.

That is because Grammy Award-winning guitarist and sound engineer Randy Roos converted an 80-year-old house in Ashland into a recording studio known as Squam Sound, where he is able to record, produce, mix, and master their songs.

Among those turning to Squam Sound for their recording sessions is veteran actor, game show host, and musician John Davidson, who has just recorded what he sees as becoming his “signature tune” — “They’ll play this when I walk on stage,” he said as he wrapped up a recording session in early September.

John describes Randy as four people in one: “He’s an artist at all the knobs and all the sliders, but he is an incredible, award-winning guitarist and record-producer and arranger.”

Describing their four-year musical collaboration, John said, “He’s gotten to know my way of singing and I count on him to tell me, ‘Was that good?’ And he says, ‘Don’t you want to do another?’ And that means that I could do better. But it’s just, it’s a great relationship.”

It was through Ernest Thompson, the author of “On Golden Pond”, that they became acquainted. John mentioned to Ernest that he had heard there was a sound studio on Squam Lake, and Ernest said, “Oh, I know.” Ernest had used the studio to record the audiobook version of his novel, “The Book of Maps,” about a down-on-his-luck filmmaker who takes his ten-year-old son on a road trip across America, using a 1930s travel guide.

John, who will be 83 in December and has played in major showrooms of Las Vegas, recorded several singles with Randy at Squam Sound, and said, “Eventually, we’re going to do an album. I just don’t want to work anywhere else.”

Joining them for the recording session was pianist Steve Hunt, who has worked with Randy for four decades.

“I’ve had Randy play in my studio, and I’ve played here at his studio,” Steve said, “and so, when he was working with John, he said they need some piano, and … they wanted to do it here.”

Steve said he knew who John was “from TV and all that, but I didn’t know he was a singer.” He found out that John came with a good idea of what he wanted for his piano accompaniment.

Before Steve’s arrival, they sent him a preliminary recording with the vocals, guitar, and drums, so Steve had an idea of how to approach the song.

“I wasn’t quite sure what he wanted, until I show up, and then I start playing, and they both give suggestions, and I just try stuff,” Steve said of the recording process. “And then John said, ‘Make it like Rachmaninov,’ and I’m like, ‘Oh, I can do that,’ because I play a little classical. So I started doing it. He’s like, ‘Yeah, that’s it,’ and they’re happy with the track.”

John Davidson watches as Randy Roos adjusts the sound on a new song they are collaborating to produce. (Tom Caldwell Photo)

In engineering songs, Randy is able to rely on a strong musical background that began with playing piano at age nine.

“That didn’t work,” he recalls. “My brain is not wired for keyboard at all; I cannot handle it. And I picked up guitar when I was 10, and that made sense to me.”

Inspired by the Beatles and John Mayall’s “Bluesbreakers” album featuring Eric Clapton, Randy began by playing rock and blues.

“We were playing Boston clubs when I was in tenth grade, and then there was always jazz in the house,” he said. “Then, toward the end of high school, like the summer after junior year, I went to Berklee [College of Music] for a seven-week course, like for kids, and met Mick Goodrich, who was a very influential, not well known except among guitarists, but a very influential innovator of the guitar in the jazz idiom. … It was one of the luckiest things that ever happened to me, because he just opened up the whole world of music, and I got really into jazz.”

Randy was one of the original members of Orchestra Luna, a theatrical rock group that got a major recording deal with Epic Records.

“Rupert Holmes was our producer,” Randy said. “He’s the one that did the Pina Colada song — actually, the correct title of that, I believe, is ‘Escape’. It was amazing working with him. He’s a very legit musician. He did the orchestral arrangements, wrote them all out, conducted them and everything. He really has a lot together, and he and I just hit it off, because we could speak in very similar musical terms, and it was great.”

The problem was that, just as the record came out, “Everyone at Epic Records that loved us left the company, and everyone that replaced them didn’t love us. A month later, we were basically released from the label. And there’s a lot of stories like that,” Randy said.

After playing in his own band for a while, Randy enrolled at Berklee, studying there for a year before getting a record contract of his own.

“And then I got married and decided that doing bands and being on the road and all that was not conducive to my married life,” he said.

Through a friend, he got involved with industrial video production, and that led to television and an association with PBS, where he worked with Alan Alda for 12 seasons of Scientific American Frontiers and several episodes in the NOVA series.

During that time, he also worked in the New England Conservatory Jazz Department, then accepted a position at Berklee as associate professor of Guitar and Music Synthesis — a two-day-a-week job that he continues today.

“I’m in my 21st year now,” he said. “I totally love it, and every year I’m at Berklee, I kind of I love it more, and it led to my Grammy.”

He had been “trading guitar lessons” with another guitar faculty member, Berta Rojas, a world-class classical guitarist from Paraguay. Randy recorded, mixed, and mastered her album, “Legado”, which won the Latin Grammy for Best Classical Album. Because he had engineered it, Randy also won the Grammy.

Randy said he prefers old Gibson guitars, and he has one from 1961 and another from 1967.

He also found a Taylor acoustic made with Koa wood that he loves for its softer sound.

“And then I got into a funny retuning of it that required a big fat string. I tuned the fifth string, the A string, down an octave. So I bought another one of the same guitar and had that outfitted to handle that string.”

The other guitar he especially likes is a Fernandez guitar based on the Fender Stratocaster, “but nicer”.

“I prefer the Gibson thing over the Fender Strat thing,” he said. “I know most electric guitar players nowadays play Strats, but I prefer the Gibson thing. But if I need the vibe of a Strat, I do love that one.”

Prior to opening Squam Sound, Randy built “a small, well-equipped recording studio” in the attic of his Roslindale home. The studio then took over the master bedroom of that house. When he and his wife moved to New Hampshire, they added a 1,900-square-foot addition to their new home, in order to have a recording studio with two isolation rooms. That is Squam Sound.

“I just kind of fell into it,” Randy said of the recording studio. “I ended up really loving that work.”

Between his time teaching and recording, Randy still makes time to play. He will be performing with the KR Collective at Hermit Woods Winery in Meredith on the first Friday of each month. Randy and his guitars will be joined by Steve Hunt on piano; Dave Kobrenski on Fula flute, djembe, and ngoni; Mike Rossi on bass; and Tim Gilmore on drums.

The KR Collective features, clockwise from top left, Mike Rossi on bass; Dave Kobrenski on Fula flute, djembe, and ngoni; Dave Hunt on piano; Randy Roos on guitar; and Tim Gilmore on drums.

A Passion for Flowers

By Kathi Caldwell-Hopper

Kevin and Jennifer French love flowers. All kinds of flowers in a variety of colors and sizes.

Their love of flowers was not on their radar when the couple purchased a circa 1800 farm at 250 Waumbeck Road in Wolfeboro about 26 years ago.

Says Jennifer as she is surrounded by large buckets of flowers arranged and ready to go to flower subscribers (more on that later in this story), “We started as a hobby farm with vegetable patches, pick-your-own strawberries and flowers. In 2017 we got serious about growing flowers.”

“Serious” is one word to describe the floral business that is the backbone of Full Moon Farm, because it is indeed physical, often hard work and it requires determination to succeed. But it’s fun too, or else Jennifer might still be teaching instead of spending her days growing and always “thinking flowers” year round.

“Kevin grew up in a dairy farming family and he is a lifelong Wolfeboro resident,” Jennifer says. “I retired from teaching at Kingswood Regional High School in Wolfeboro last year to do this (flowers) full time.”

When looking at the beautiful flowers in a variety of blooms and colors, it is difficult to imagine the immense work that goes into the cycle of growing the florals appreciated by customers at Full Moon Farm.

The process goes something like this: Jennifer and Kevin choose which flowers will be offered each year, they plant the starter seeds during the colder months, making sure they are kept in a good temperature environment, they watch the flowers grow and transplant them into the rich farm soil each spring when the weather warms. As the huge variety of flowers continue to grow outdoors at the farm, the work does not end. Jennifer and Kevin watch the weather, ruefully explaining that some summers see better weather than others. “Last summer’s rain was not helpful,” Jennifer shakes her head as she remembers the near daily pattern of rain. “But this year’s hot weather has been good for the gardens.”

One of the important things at Full Moon Farm is growing sustainably. “We do not use any chemicals (no pesticides, no herbicides - only organic fertilizer) and by doing so, we keep our farm ecosystem clean and healthy,” explains Jennifer.

Along with growing and selling flowers at their charming little farm stand on the property (it is an honor system whereby customers stop by, choose the flower arrangements offered each day in the shop, and pay right there), Full Moon Farm is the place to get quality CBD products grown on premises.

“Kevin was a stone mason by trade, and he got serious arthritis from his job,” Jennifer explains as she outlines how they got into growing and offering CBD products as part of their business. Kevin found CBD bath balms to be very helpful in combating the arthritis pain, so the couple began to explore the idea of growing similar products for their customers.

“We are federally licensed to grow hemp and we have 200 plants. From those, we make CBD products, and our two best sellers are a topical CBD salve and CBD gummies to help with sleep.” The CBD portion of Full Moon Farm is tightly controlled with visits from federal inspectors to make sure all is done to specifications. The CBD products also can be purchased in the farm stand shop.

The biggest love for Kevin and Jennifer is the flowers they grow at Full Moon Farm. “We discovered a flower farm is a niche market that was not being filled in this area,” Jennifer explains. “We love to farm, and it made sense to go in this direction. It is hard work, but we find it easier than vegetable farming. Flowers are fun and we just love doing it.”

Couples planning weddings appreciate the work Jennifer and Kevin have put into the flowers they offer. Weddings have become a big part of the Full Moon Farm business and they create custom florals for many Lakes Region weddings.

“We do wedding flowers, as well as flowers for rehearsal dinners, and Kevin is our main floral designer for that segment of the business. Our flowers are fresh, and they last a long time,” Jennifer adds.

The most popular wedding flowers this year (it changes yearly as trends come and go), is peonies, because, as Jennifer says, they are beautiful and fragrant. Also popular for weddings are ranunculus, dahlias and lycianthes.

Customers/homeowners love the chance to get fresh flowers from Full Moon Farm every week during the summer. “Customers use our flower subscriptions where they can pre-buy in the winter to have an ever-evolving variety of flowers each summer,” Jennifer explains of the program. Many people take advantage of the luxury of having fresh flowers, grown right on the farm at Full Moon, for their home each week. “We have a different variety every week and people like that.”

Floral design workshops are very popular, and Kevin and Jennifer are growing that side of the business. “Workshops are fun for people!” Jennifer says.

Also available every summer is the honor-system where shoppers can get a bouquet or arrangement (and also CBD products) any day of the week. During the spring season, customers love the variety that could include fancy tulips, peonies, ranunculus and more. In summer, flowers include but are not limited to snapdragons, campanula and zinnias to name but a few.

Fall is coming up soon and Full Moon Farm continues to offer their customers a lot, such as dried flowers and workshops in how to dry different blooms. During the Christmas season, Jennifer offers wreaths and swags.

The year rolls around in an orderly fashion at Full Moon Farm, with early December typically ending the sales season. In the quieter months of winter (January and February) Jennifer and Kevin plan what seeds and florals they want for the coming summer. They order seeds and bulbs and meet with brides-to-be to talk about their upcoming wedding floral needs, and they get ideas and quotes to couples. “We also work on marketing, with photo scanning and other tasks,” says Jennifer.

By the beginning of March, the seeds are planted in the greenhouse and by May 1 approximately, the flowers are growing, soon to be transplanted to the fields where they will create a colorful landscape that customers delight in experiencing.

Full Moon Farm does not do cut-your-own flowers, but customers know they can get the variety they long for all winter by stopping at the little farm stand on premises.

When asked what the future of Full Moon Farm might be, Jennifer gazes out over her greenhouses and fields from a window of her flower studio as she ponders the question. “There is no doubt that farming is hard work. But we love it and will continue. Another of our goals is to do education and outreach on farming and flowers.”

The work may be intensive, but the outcome is beautiful and much appreciated by people who wait all winter and stop by Full Moon Farm when summer rolls around. They know that at the farm stand they will find the end product of Jennifer and Kevin’s passion for flowers.

Visit www.fullmoonfarmnh.com for information. The farm stand is open 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., seven days a week during the flower season from May through September. It is stocked with mixed bouquets, straight bunches of flowers, jar arrangements and more.

Master Bladesmith Crafts Utility & Specialty Knives

By Thomas P. Caldwell

Residents and visitors to the Granite State may be surprised at the number of artists and craftsman inhabiting its towns and cities, many of whom have attained world-class distinction. Among them is Master Bladesmith Zack Jonas of Warner.

A bladesmith, similar to a blacksmith, forges metal tools, weapons, and art forms, but with very specialized skills for the creation of knives and blades. Attaining the rank of journeyman bladesmith from the American Bladesmith Society in 2012 and master bladesmith in 2019, Zack has created distinctive pieces that have gone not only across the country but also to Germany, Spain, New Zealand, Dubai, Hong Kong, England, and Canada.

Some of the more unusual creations have been a Roman-style gladius, worn by foot soldiers between the third century BC and the third century AD, and a custom piece combining features of the American Bowie knife and the Arabian khanjar, a traditional dagger worn in many Middle Eastern countries and considered central to masculine culture.

Zack said the gladius was commissioned by a son as a gift for his father’s 80th birthday.

“The father was a big Roman history buff, so the son wanted a Roman sword for him, which was really fun,” Zack said. “I also really like doing that kind of project that has a personal significance, both for the giver and the receiver.”

The khanjar has a short curved blade shaped like the letter “J” while the Bowie knife has long straight blade with a curved, keen point.

“So this guy wanted a fusion of those two things, and, you know, those two knives are very different. So I went, all right, how’s that gonna work?” Zack recalled. “I can’t picture that at all, but the thing that made me want to work with him was that he said he wanted it not to be too Aladdin-ish, which, to me, told me he wasn’t taking the cultural importance of it too seriously, and he just wanted something cool. So I went, I had no idea what that’s gonna look like. Let me try and figure it out. And ultimately, I came up with a piece that I really liked the design of. He was really happy with it.”

Zack said the customer was originally from Jordan, and he wanted the number seven incorporated into the knife, because the Jordanian flag has a seven-pointed star.

“An odd number is fairly tricky to incorporate into a symmetrical style of thing,” Zack said, “so I ended up making the handle’s cross-section seven-sided. It was a septagon, and I did some silver inlay into the handle and some other fun stuff. Anyway, that was a cool and rather unusual project.”

Earning a master bladesmith designation from the American Bladesmith Society requires working through the ranks, first as an apprentice bladesmith for at least three years (or two years with a certificate from an ABS-approved course under the guidance of a master bladesmith instructor) and recognition for high-quality work. Those who accomplish that become journeyman bladesmiths. To be eligible for the master bladesmith designation, the journeyman bladesmith must have practiced for at least two years before presenting work for evaluation. The workmanship must be judged to be “excellent” to “superlative” in quality, transcending to the level of functional art. Less than 200 individuals in the world hold the master bladesmith title.

Zack recalled, “To earn that rank, the second test that I had to do was to create a set of five knives that were sort of to the limit of my ability and very artistic and fancy. And those knives were presented to a panel of master smith judges, who had to look them over and try and find anything wrong with them, and determine whether or not I was worthy of the rank of master smith. So those five pieces were five of the best knives I’ve done to date, even though that was five years ago, and they were pretty elaborate and special.”

Zack also is an active member of the League of New Hampshire Craftsmen, serving on the Standards Committee and sitting on the board of directors. He recently was elected chair of the board of directors.

He had a booth at the League’s Sunapee Craft Fair on August 3-11, selling 86 of the 120 pieces he brought.

“I think this year was my best in terms of gross sales,” he said, “edging out last year, which was my best ever, edging out the previous year, which was my best ever. So the trend is good … in the right direction.”

He also took part in his first-ever knife show in California, and he plans to return next year.

Asked how he got interested in knives, Zack said he has always been fascinated by knives, even as a child.

“Whenever we went into an antique shop, it was, ‘Zack, put your hands in your pockets,’ and it wasn’t because I was going to break something; it’s because I was looking for knives. When I was 10, I stole one of my mom’s paring knives out of the kitchen, and I never did anything with it. I didn’t cut anything with it. I hid it under the couch in the basement, and I used to take it out from time to time, and it wasn’t anything special, for that matter. … I just wanted to possess it.

“Obviously, stealing is wrong, but it didn’t occur to me quite how stupid that was until I was in my 30s, because I could have taken it out and looked at it anytime in the kitchen, anyway.”

He had not considered a career involving knives; from the age of about four, he started taking art lessons, then studied philosophy in college. After graduation, took a desk job in Boston.

“Then, around about 2006, maybe it’s 2005, I discovered a website called knifeart.com, which was an online custom knife purveyor. And I went, ‘Hang on, custom knives? That means people are making these. I have to try this.’ … So I started asking around, and eventually my sister’s friend’s colleague’s husband, it turned out, was apprentice to this guy, JD Smith, who was a master knife-maker and was teaching at Mass Art down in Boston … so I signed up for the class and just was completely hooked.”

During his apprenticeship with JD Smith, he helped to teach the class. Then, in 2010, he traveled around the country to learn from other instructors.

“And a thing that I observed was that many master-level makers … had the desire to teach, but simply didn’t have the space physically,” Zack said. “So I concocted this notion in my mind of, well, what if I built a studio that was larger than I needed, so that I could say, ‘Hey, come and teach a class out of my studio. You make the money, the students who come to learn get the skills, I make a little bit of money. I get all this networking stuff. Everybody’s happy.’”

Not only did he earn his journeyman bladesmith ranking in 2012, he got married, moved to New Hampshire, and broke ground on a workshop.

His first workshop was in Wilmot, “and the first instructor agreed to come before the paint was dry on my first studio,” he said. “I thought it would take 15 years to kind of get any reputation out that anyone would trust me to do that, but the guy in question … said, ‘If you can get a quorum of four students to sign up for a month-long class to do this, you know, immersion, crazy thing, I’ll show up. And he came up from South Africa. He’s an Englishman who was living in South Africa at the time, and he came up and we did this crazy class.”

Zack continued, “That’s how I got connected, ultimately, to Peter Johnsson, which is how I got into making swords.”

Peter Johnsson is an influential, world-renowned Swedish swordsmith who devoted decades of extensive research, documenting artifacts from the bronze age to the early renaissance in museums across Europe and the United States. Over the last 20 years, working as an artist and exhibition curator, he has reconstructed historical swords, edged tools, and weapons.

Zack said, “It’s hard to imagine being interested in knives and not thinking swords are cool, and, you know, I grew up on fantasy novels and action movies and stuff like that. So that all was definitely swirling around in there. But sword-making, while there is certainly a lot of carryover in terms of the tooling and some of the techniques, it’s actually swords are not just larger knives, and that is a misconception that a lot of knife-makers have until they make a sword, and the way that I got into swords, specifically, was through Peter Johnsson. And Peter is now a dear friend.”

The student workshops are an integral part of Zack’s business today, and Johnsson leads sword-making classes at his Warner shop.

Zack himself is too busy making pieces to teach. He does enjoy leading tours of his of workshop, pointing out the various machines and equipment and describing the range of knives and swords he makes.

“Some of them are simple — you know, chef’s knives — and some of them are very elaborate projects that I can’t necessarily go into detail on because they’re for prominent individuals, but that’s an exciting development for me, because I like doing the sort of what I call my quote, unquote production work, which is all still individual knives, totally handmade,” Zack said.

“But, you know, I’ve got, let’s say, a standardized model, my seven-inch chef’s knife. It’s my most popular knife. I’ve sold hundreds of them. I love making them, but I can do it kind of without thinking about it at this point, I’ve made so many of them. You know, it’s like putting on an old pair of shoes. It’s very familiar. And I love that those wind up in the hands of people who are going to use them and who are going to love them, and people come up to me at craft shows and say, ‘I bought a knife five years ago, and I smile every day when I cut stuff.

“That’s awesome and fulfilling for me, but it’s not necessarily creatively challenging. So these more elaborate projects are really cool, because they test me as an artist and allow me to level up my skills and really push myself.”

Even simple knives require skill in their design.

“You have to think about how the piece is going to be used,” Zack said.

When making a hunting knife, for example, the smith has to keep in mind that, a lot of times, “it’s dark, cold, your hands are wet, maybe you’re inside of an animal so you can’t see exactly what you’re doing. So the knife has to be ergonomically shaped, both so that it’s comfortable for use, but also so that it indexes to your hand in the right direction in an intuitive way. So there’s a lot of contouring and stuff that goes into it,” Zack explains.

Similarly, balance is important. Zack will ask a visitor to hold a finished sword in a neutral position, parallel to the floor. Then in the other hand, the visitor is given a sword without the hilt.

“Which one is heavier?” he asks. The choice is always the unfinished sword, even though the other one weighs three times as much.

“It’s just the way it’s balanced,” Zack explains. “One of the comments that I get constantly, and it’s very gratifying, when people pick up my chef’s knives, they’ll say, “It’s so light.’ I mean, there’s usually an audible gasp. And the funny thing for me is that my chef’s knives are often actually heavier than commercial knives, heavier than what they’re used to, but they are balanced properly.”

He explained that, when the sword’s weight is toward the front, the bearer must use the small muscles of the forearm to keep the point elevated. When it’s balanced properly, the swordsman is able to use the larger muscles of the upper arm and shoulder to control its position, making it easier to move and tricking the brain to think it is light.

To learn more about Zack Jonas’ work, visit https://jonasblade.com.

Meet You At The Meetinghouse

By Kathi Caldwell-Hopper

If you lived in a community in rural New Hampshire many years ago, you probably worshipped or attended town gatherings at a meetinghouse.

These buildings (meetinghouses) were deemed necessary for each possible settlement. To be granted a charter for a township, such a building was necessary if anyone wanted to receive a grant to settle.

In colonial times, religion ruled the lives of nearly every family. In each community, most meetinghouses served as churches, whether overseen by a minister or a group of citizens. The meetinghouses that are still standing today are quite old and have been renovated over the years. No matter the style or age, the meetinghouses offer a glimpse into the distant past architecturally and for their uses, whether religious or town business.

Times were rough long ago and getting lumber for a meetinghouse was difficult. Thus, many meetinghouses were made of logs and modest in size, according to “Colonial Meeting-Houses of New Hampshire” by Eva A. Speare.

At first, a simple meetinghouse structure was deemed acceptable, but over the years that changed to more ornate buildings as a town grew and the population expanded.

Building a meetinghouse was a big deal, and every able-bodied person in town participated. Socializing was part of the project, with picnics and families in attendance to watch as the men built the new meetinghouse. (It was said that “rum” was a big part of every project!) Timbers were hefty, and the men jostled for the prestige of being the strongest and most able to lift the bulkiest logs.

In New Hampton, the Dana Hill Meetinghouse was named for Dr. Simeon Dana, who arrived in the town in the early 1800s. After attending Dartmouth College, Dana was equipped to serve as a physician and, oddly enough, he also offered singing and dancing lessons. It is unknown how many of his patients took Dana up on his musical instruction, but he became a well-known doctor at that time. He also embraced the Methodist religion and eventually became an ordained minister. Dana Hill was named after the doctor who lived near the top of the hill.

Near Laconia, the Province Road Meeting House was built in 1792 on Province Road in Belmont. The building resembled a church and was at first used by Congregationalists. Around 1820, it was used by the Free Will Baptist Church. The original structure was 52 by 40 feet with a south-facing entrance and box pews. In the mid-1800s, the height of the building was reduced. In the early 1900s, the pulpit was auctioned off, and a belfry was added in 1910.

Elsewhere in the Lakes Region, the Barnstead Parade Meetinghouse/Church was mostly used by the townspeople for religious services. In 1796, Eli Bunker furnished the town with a place for a meetinghouse. The building was finished outside and painted yellow. It was used for some community meetings but was mainly used for worship. Town meetings were held in the building for 24 years upon completion. Once a minister was hired, it was a church with weekly services.

An unusual and rustically pretty meetinghouse was built in New Durham in 1770. The meetinghouse is located on Old Bay Road, which at one time was the town center. The first settlers arrived in what is now New Durham in the early 1760s and the community was eventually incorporated in 1762. Building and settlement in the area were curtailed, however, during the French and Indian War; the meetinghouse would not see any community gatherings until the 1770s.

The meetinghouse in New Durham is in the Type II style, two stories high, and built on a vast rock ledge. (This makes the building easily recognizable today). For some years, the meetinghouse offered religious services by Congregational minister Reverend Nathaniel Porter. Another minister, Benjamin Randall, followed Porter’s years of service, and he spread the Free Will Baptist religion around the area. Eventually, the Free Will Baptists built their own church and ceased using the old meetinghouse.

At that point, the meetinghouse saw only very occasional use and was cut down to a reasonable size in 1838. After the town shifted the majority of its population elsewhere, the meetinghouse was not used and was sold for storage of farm animals.

In 2017 it was renovated, and although the building has changed over the years, it is an architectural gem.

The Quakers started a population in New Hampshire many years ago, and a meetinghouse in North Sandwich was one of their finest in construction. Built in 1881, it was home to the Sandwich Society of Friends. About 50 members called Sandwich home in the 1770s, and that population grew over the years. According to “Historic Meetinghouses and Churches of New Hampshire” by Glenn A. Knoblock, the original meetinghouse for the Quakers was in Center Sandwich.

Quakers living in outlying areas built the North Sandwich Meeting House to solve the problem of a place to worship closer to their homes. It is a historical building that is accurate to its period and a good example of a place of worship in a country setting.

Wolfeboro is an old town in the Lakes Region and, as such, it has many buildings reflecting its history. The former Wolfeborough, Brookfield, and Wakefield Meetinghouse in the Cotton Mountain region of the town was a rural church. It served as a replacement for an 1801 meetinghouse situated nearby. The structure’s architecture is in keeping with its time, as it was built in the 1850s. Although simple in design, it is a beautiful example of the Greek Revival style.

In the early days of settlement in New Hampshire, meetinghouses served many purposes. Whether for a place to gather for political discussions, socializing, town meetings, or, more often, religious services, meetinghouses were important. We are fortunate that some of those structures survive to this day, offering a look into the distant past.

Ornamental Blacksmith Maintains Healthy Balance

By Thomas P. Caldwell

A visit to Jay Aubertin’s shop in Wilmot will reveal a range of blacksmithing tools, from a 125-year-old anvil made in Brooklyn, New York, to a CNC [computer numerical control] plasma cutter that directs a plasma torch along a path established by numerical codes. Whichever tool he uses helps him to bring his artistic visions to life.

Jay is an ornamental blacksmith, one of three general types in the trade. Farriers take care of horses; bladesmiths make knives, daggers, and swords; and ornamental blacksmiths forge useful and artistic pieces, such as decorative railings and sculptures.

In front of his shop is a feather sculpture, made with “weathering steel” that allows a certain amount of rust to form and seal itself against the weather. The quill is stainless steel, and the feather portion is formed to resemble the feather from an injured owl that his daughter named “Toby” before they took it to the Vermont Institute of Natural Science rehabilitation center in Quechee, Vermont.

“Blacksmiths can do a lot of different things” Jay explains. “Bladesmiths are much more focused, typically a more narrow knowledge set. To the public, we’re all the same. … What they do is beautiful, what I do is beautiful, but our skills overlap in many different ways.To the public, we’re all the same. … What they do is beautiful, what I do is beautiful, but our skills are so separate in so many ways.”

To explain how he comes up with ideas, Jay said, “It’s usually a couple of cups of coffee on a Sunday morning. I sit down with sketch pad and I start moving my hand over the page, and all of a sudden — like the feather, right? Okay, well, that’s a pretty line, you know; okay, this is how we draw feathers, you know; and then what scale do we want that at? What type of materials?”

Sometimes what he does is influenced by a new tool, a new technique, or a new skill he has learned.

“With, say, a hydraulic bender — I have a 16-ton hydraulic press. It can bend thick, cold steel, and just bend it over a 90-degree, or you can bend it into curves. Rollers can bend big arches and big circles or small ones, you know, so you can start playing with that. So that can spark creativity as well.”

He also takes inspiration from his surroundings. He lives on an old farm, so things like wagon wheels can provide ideas. A member of the League of New Hampshire Craftsmen, Jay said he plans to make a sculpture using stones and metal from busted farm machinery.

“All this machinery stood the test — it’s still around — but it succumbed to the stones on the land,” he said.

Even a walk in the woods can spark creativity.

Jay found his vocation by way of working at his father Scott Aubertin’s sign shop.

“He taught me a lot about metalwork,” Jay said, “measuring, finishing, design, and things like that.”

He also is a bicyclist, and he started making bicycle frames.

“I was fortunate enough to work with one of the bicycle masters down in southern New Hampshire, Ted Wojick, and he taught me a lot about welding, measuring machines, things like that,” Jay said.

He earned a degree in welding technology at Manchester Community College, but went back to making bicycle frames. He also worked with a jeweler along the way, before taking classes with a couple of other blacksmiths. He said he had done some sculptures in a metalwares class in high school, and he decided that blacksmithing would be something to try that would be a little more creative than making bicycle frames, with a more diverse scope of work.

“As the world changes with bicycle frames, it’s hard to convince someone they want a more expensive frame that’s heavier, versus … state-of-the-art equipment for the same or less money, and looks really sharp,” Jay said. “So when I came to that realization, it was like, okay, what kind of skill set do I pull on? I’ve been working with my father, fabricating signs for about 20 years, and I have these fabrication skills, so let’s put those and do something that’s more artistic, more varied, and see where that goes.”

Jay began his official career as a blacksmith in Hooksett, asking his grandfather if he could have his anvil that he was no longer using. He then taught himself the skills and watched videos.

“I sold a table to an interior designer,” Jay said. “He needed it for a client of his, so they were happy. Sold the next job, sold the next job, sold the next job, and then just kept going.”

His friends in North Sutton introduced him to central New Hampshire, and Jay found it to be a beautiful area that also was conveniently located between Concord and Hanover.

Membership in the League of New Hampshire Craftsmen provided one outlet for his works, and he also has items at the John Hay Estate at The Fells in Newbury, but Jay said a lot of his work is with interior designers, landscape architects, architects, builders.

“Probably 90 percent of my work is with another professional,” he said.

One piece at The Fells ended up with a buyer in California, but most of his work is local.

“It’s nice, because I get to meet the customers and interact with people. That’s part of what gets me excited about this,” Jay said. “I get to meet cool people who want to see my work in their homes, or want a handrail, or I get to help them, or whatever it may be.”

Perhaps his most complicated project was making railings for a spiral staircase built by woodworker Myrl Phelps of Danbury.

“He built this beautiful set of curved stairs; actually two sets,” Jay said. “Thank goodness he was doing the math with the stairs; I just followed his stairway. This was a very ornate build: a lot of scrollwork, acanthus leaves, molded-brass handrail that needed to be curved around. That was technically a challenge, making the tools to make the pieces. I had a whole process for making the leaves, because the job was going to be 100 and some leaves. They had to be cut and veined and formed and then fit to the rail. That was really a mind-bender.”

He had to set it up in his shop where the railing extended from the ceiling to the floor, with compound curves.

“Everything needs to fit the stairs,” Jay said. Everything needs to meet code so it’s safe. I had the ability to do it in one piece, so that’s how I wanted to do it, because then you can make sure everything flows right.”

Jay has a mobile trailer that he uses to transport objects back and forth from the shop to the worksite, and sometimes he has to build them in pieces. The trailer also allows him to sometimes do all the work on-site; it is equipped with everything he needs to fashion pieces away from the shop.

He has found that 75 percent of his work relies on precise measurements and matching curves or slopes, but “when I get to do sculpture, that’s fun, because it’s relaxing. That’s creative, and I get to pull on maybe that chunk of metal that’s been sitting over there for a while.”

Jay likes to work with metal discs that he can pick up at a steel yard; they can serve as a base or an element of a sculpture.

“Steel is my primary metal, just mild steel, because it’s economical to use,” Jay said. “It forms well, heats well, welds well, finishes  well. Sometimes I use aluminum, which is lighter-weight, corrosion-resistant. I much prefer steel, but if we need aluminum, we’ll use aluminum. Sometimes we get into bronze, which is a really beautiful metal to work with. Certain types of bronze can be forged really nicely and are relatively soft, compared to steel, and then, unlike steel, with bronze, you can leave it raw, and then it weathers over time, and it really gets that look of having been there forever. You can do that with steel, but it’s going to rust and then, eventually it’s going to be too rusty and then you’re gonna have to mess with it. Stainless steel is another material that’s a pain in the butt to work with, but it's corrosion-resistant. You can put it next to the ocean, it’s gonna be fine. Copper is beautiful to work with. Except the, like, really exotic metals, like titanium and stuff like that, I use everything.”

Many of his sculptures are kinetic works that have to be carefully balanced. One sculpture at a home in New London features a rotating nine-foot arm, counterbalanced by a large rock.

“A bird sits on it, and you can see it move back and forth, it’s such a fine balance,” Jay said.

He emphasizes that all his work is hand-forged, without using pre-made pieces.

“It came to me as square stock,” he said. “I heated it up. I forged it to put that texture, and I think that’s where a lot of the value comes from.”

Jay has a “healthy backlog” of jobs to do, “and I try to keep it that way.” He then is assured of year-round work while being able to balance it with family life. His wife, Melissa, handles the bookkeeping and accounting for him, so he does not get overwhelmed.

“I’m not the only person running this whole business,” he said.

The NASWA Resort Is Central Part Of Motorcycle Week

By Thomas P. Caldwell

The 101st Laconia Motorcycle Week runs June 8 - 16 this year, and other than the Laconia Motorcycle Week Association itself, the entity most closely associated with the annual event is the NASWA Resort. Not only does the NASWA kick off the nine-day event with the Peter Makris Memorial Run on Saturday, June 8, it has special activities all week long, with live music at the beachfront NazBar & Grill and Late Night at the Blue Bistro.

The 18th annual Peter Makris Memorial Run is a fundraiser for the Laconia Fire Department’s Life Saving Fund and its rescue boats; the Easter Seals’ Veterans Count program that serves the active-duty military, veterans, and families; the Lakes Region Community Emergency Response Team; the Belknap House, a homeless shelter for families; the New Hampshire Veterans’ Home in Tilton; and Building Dreams For Marines, a non-profit group that retrofits the homes of veterans with combat-related mobility issues to make them more accessible by building interior and exterior ramps, renovating kitchens, bedrooms, and baths, widening doorways and hallways, and installing such things as grab bars, swing-away hinges, and fixtures such as sinks, cabinets, toilets, and roll-in showers.

Cynthia Makris, Peter’s daughter, serves vice-chair of the Lakes Region Chapter of Veterans Count, a program offering case management and emergency financial assistance to service members, veterans, and their families. The Peter Makris Run has donated more than $500,000 to Veterans Count over the years.

The Peter Makris Memorial Run was established in June 2007 in the wake of Peter’s untimely death following a tough illness. His family and friends created the memorial run as a lasting tribute to celebrate his life and his love for both motorcycling and the Laconia community.

The event begins with continental breakfast and registration at the NASWA Resort between 8 and 9:30 a.m., where participants gather to pay their respects and share stories of their experiences with Peter. The riders will receive a wrist band, pin, and a chip for a free beer “on Peter”.

“The atmosphere is one of celebration, camaraderie, and a shared passion for motorcycles and the open road,” Cynthia said.

Opening ceremonies will take place at 10 a.m. with a Blessing of the Bikes across the street in the NASWA parking lot on Weirs Boulevard.

Kickstands go up at 10:30 a.m. for a ride around Lake Winnipesaukee, with no traffic, thanks to the escort of state and local police. The scenic ride takes participants through picturesque landscapes, wending through the small towns and along the shores of Lake Winnipesaukee. For the last couple of years, the ride has included a chance to go around the Loudon NASCAR track at the New Hampshire Motor Speedway. The route, Cynthia says, “is carefully selected to showcase the natural beauty of the region and serves as a fitting backdrop for this tribute.”

There will be an after-ride party, beginning at 12:30 p.m., at the NAZBar & Grill, featuring a gourmet lunch — “A Kick Ass BBQ Buffet” — prepared by Boston Celebrity Chef Anthony Ambrose. There also will be a 50/50 raffle and live music by the James Montgomery Band.

Last year’s run attracted a record 420 riders, raising more than $575,000 for the charities.

“What sets the Peter Makris Memorial Run apart is the palpable sense of camaraderie and unity that permeates the event,” Cynthia said. “Riders from various backgrounds come together, led first by the NH State and local police and by the U.S. Marine Corps Leathernecks, of which Peter Makris was a member, forming bonds and friendships forged through a mutual love for riding. It is a testament to the enduring spirit of brotherhood that lies at the heart of the motorcycling community.”

Other Motorcycle Week activities at the NASWA Resort include the NazBar Tattoo Contest on Thursday, June 13, at 6 p.m. Winners in each category, male and female and Best of Show, will receive a trophy.

Peter is the son-in-law of NASWA founders Jim and Fannie Salta, marrying their daughter, Hope. He was an attorney and a community leader, and was instrumental in bringing businesses together to purchase the Laconia Fire Department’s first water rescue boat.

Jim and Fannie Salta were immigrants from Lesbos, Greece, and they purchased the original property in 1935 after discovering that it had a natural spring with water that tested 100 percent pure. They established the business as the Natural Spring Water Company — the basis for the NASWA name. Their general store also sold homemade baked beans cooked in an outdoor oven.

Acting upon their customers’ questions about where they could find a place to stay while visiting the area, they built five one-room cabins — the NASWA Spring Water Cabins. During the 1940s, they purchased  the waterfront property, and in the 1950s, Peter built the cottages that exist today.

According to the NASWA’s website, “Decades later, when Laconia’s tourists and traffic increased and the NASWA’s visible roadside location attracted many visitors, the name changed to the NASWA Motor Inn. As the resort added more food, entertainment, and features, it again outgrew its name and became The NASWA Resort.”

The business would add docks, kayaks, paddle boats, and the S.S. NASWA, a 34-foot Sea Ray Amberjack boat, while offering fine dining in the Blue Bistro and casual dining at the NazBar & Grill. Today, there is a large waterfront building and the NASWA is known as Laconia Motorcycle Week’s Official Hotel.

This past May, the New Hampshire Tourism Summit presented its Dick Hamilton Lifetime Achievement Award to Hope Makris, who has worked in tourism for 89 years and remains the NASWA’s owner.

Those looking to stay at the NASWA Resort will find the hotel to be pet-friendly, with certain rooms set aside for guests with pets, as long as they observe certain protocols, such as having dogs on leashes when not in the rooms, and not bring them into public areas unless they are guide dogs.

Civil War Memorials In The Lakes Region

What we celebrate now as Memorial Day began as Decoration Day, when families placed flowers on the graves of those who died during the Civil War. Records at Harvard University recount the earliest such celebration, organized by a group of formerly enslaved people in Charleston, South Carolina, less than a month after the Confederacy surrendered in 1865.

Charleston is where the war began, in April 1861, and by the spring of 1865, the city lay in ruin, and was largely abandoned by white residents. Black residents, along with white missionaries and teachers, organized a parade of 10,000 people on May 1, 1865, with 3,000 schoolchildren followed by several hundred women carrying baskets of flowers, wreaths, and crosses to decorate the graves of the dead. Black men followed, and then contingents of Union infantry and other citizens of both races.

Waterloo, New York, was another place where residents decorated veterans’ graves, starting in the summer of 1865. However, it was not until Ohio Representative James A. Garfield, a former general and future US president, declared May 30, 1868, to be known as Decoration Day that the observance we now observe became an official holiday.

The Grand Army of the Republic — a fraternal organization founded in 1866, comprising veterans who had served during the Civil War — led an effort to place memorials commemorating those who had had been killed in the conflict at locations around the country, including in the Lakes Region of New Hampshire. The GAR dissolved in 1956 with the death of its last member, Albert Woolson, but other community members and veterans’ groups have carried on the effort to immortalize those who died in the nation’s wars.

New Hampshire’s Civil War memorials honor the state’s Twelfth Regiment, an infantry division organized at Concord and mustered on September 10, 1862. One such memorial was placed in Meredith at the direction of a man who called himself E.E. Bedee, who claimed to have been by Abraham Lincoln’s side when John Wilkes Booth shot the president in Ford’s Theater on April 14, 1865.

Bristol historian Charles E. Greenwood recounted the incident in “He Saw Lincoln Shot: The story of an obscure captain in the Union Army who was both a witness to and a part of a historic tragedy.”

“He was seated in the second row on the left side of the theater in back of the orchestra — with a command view of President Abraham Lincoln watching the play. Because the audience was laughing at the acts on stage at the time, few heard the shot that came suddenly during the performance.

“Edwin Bedee, a captain in the Twelfth Regiment, New Hampshire Volunteers, stared in disbelief as a man vaulted from the president’s box onto stage. When Captain Bedee saw the man jump from the president’s box, his first reaction was to pursue the fleeing gunman. Instead, Bedee, like the rest, listened as John Wilkes Booth boldly uttered the incredible words, ‘Revenge for the South!’ Little did the captain know that he had just witnessed murder of one of America’s great presidents.

“Recognizing a catastrophe, Captain Bedee sprang from his chair, climbed over some rows, bolted past the orchestra footlights, and crossed the stage in the direction in which the man had disappeared. A scream shattered the mounting noise: ‘They’ve got him!’ Bedee presumed the assassin was caught. Another scream, this time from Mrs. Lincoln: ‘My husband is shot!’ A doctor was called for. Captain Bedee reeled around and bounded across the stage toward the box. As he was scaling the box, another man appeared and stated he was a physician.

“Captain Bedee stepped aside, pushed the doctor up to the railing, and followed directly behind.

“When Bedee and the surgeon reached the box, President Lincoln lay in his chair, his head tilted back as though he were asleep. The doctor searched for the wound. Seeking some evidence of blood or torn clothing, he started to remove Lincoln’s coat and unbutton his vest. Meanwhile, Chaplain Bedee was holding the president’s head. Suddenly he felt a warmth trickling into his hand. ‘Here is the wound, doctor,’ Captain Bedee said, as one of his fingers slid into the hole in the back of Lincoln’s head where the ball had only moments before forced an entry.

“During the removal of some of the president’s clothing, papers fell from his pocket. Mrs. Lincoln, apparently rational in spite of the shock, is said to have handed the packet to Captain Bedee, requesting, ‘You are an officer. Won’t you take charge of these papers?’

“By now others had gained entrance to the box through the door. One was a surgeon, who proceeded to work with his colleague on the president. When Lincoln was removed to the house across the street from the theater, Captain Bedee helped carry the dying man; he waited at the house until Secretary of War Edwin Stanton arrived soon afterward. Then Captain Bedee delivered the papers to the secretary, writing his own name and regiment upon the wrapper that Stanton placed around the documents. Secretary Stanton gave the captain two assignments: first, to go to the War Department with a message, and second, to contact the officer in command at Chain Bridge on matters dealing with the escaping assassin.”

Fremont Town Historian Joann Kilbury Spencer cast doubt on that tale: “I think some of which has been written about Bedee has been exaggerated to some degree by Bedee himself. Everyone seemed to claim at the time they were in Ford’s Theater the night of the assassination — people in those days were really caught up in their own self-importance and frequently blew themselves up bigger than they were, simply because many considered you a nobody if you weren’t in the upper class of society at that time.”

E.E. Bedee, an illegitimate son of an unmarried Sandwich woman and an unknown father, was born Edwin Elzaphan Beede. In order to hide his illegitimacy, Beede changed the spelling of his last name. According to a history of the 12th New Hampshire Regiment of Volunteers, Bedee was a printer before the Civil War. He enlisted in Albany, New York, and spent his first three months as an orderly sergeant before being promoted to second lieutenant. Later he was appointed a messenger in the citizens’ corps. Returning to Meredith, he joined New Hampshire’s 12th Regiment on August 18, 1852, as a sergeant-major, rising through the ranks to a major.

The 12th regiment was involved in some of the fiercest battles of the Civil War, including Chancellorsville, Gettysburg, Cold Harbor, and the siege of Richmond. Bedee was wounded at Chancellorsville on May 3, 1863, and again on June 4, 1864. He was captured and made a prisoner at Bermuda Hundred, Virginia, on November 17, 1864. He was paroled on Feb. 22, 1865, made major on May 26, and mustered out June 21 as captain.

After the the war, Beede went to South Africa and made a fortune in the diamond fields. He sold his claims seven years later and set up as a diamond broker in Boston for several years.

In 1892, Beede gave Meredith a marble and granite statue of a Civil War veteran in uniform to perpetuate the memory of those who enlisted in the New Hampshire’s 12th.

Beede died in Plymouth on January 13, 1908, and is buried in the Meredith Village Cemetery.

Lakes Region Monuments

Alton: Its monument is “dedicated to the memory of those who enlisted from Alton in the War of 1861-65. Died in defense of their country and sleep in unknown graves. Erected by M.H. Savage Post GAR.” Three sides of the monument then go on to list the names of the deceased and where they died.

Ashland: The town actually has two Civil War monuments. The oldest was erected by the Grand Army of the Republic OW Keyes Post and dedicated to the unknown dead of the Civil War. It is tall and narrow with a very simple inscription: “GAR / 61-65 / Unknown”. A second memorial is inscribed “Lincoln” and “In memory of the soldiers of Ashland in the War 1861-1865”.

Bristol: The US government gave the Bristol GAR post a surplus Civil War naval mortar from the USN Orvette for use as a monument in 1896. It was placed on a granite base in Central Square in 1897 and was formally dedicated on November 4, 1898. When the square was redesigned in 2012, the mortar was moved and, embarrassingly, the cannonballs were mounted on the wrong side of the mortar. A dozen years later, the mistake has not been corrected.

Center Barnstead: Dedicated on September 23, 1911, Center Barnstead’s monument depicts a uniformed Civil War soldier who may be Colonel Henry W. Blair. The man, with a mustache and beard, stands dressed in boots, socks, a hip-length jacket, and a hat with a wide brim. He holds the muzzle of his rifle in front of him, and a bedroll is slung over his left shoulder. The sculpture is mounted on a block of polished dark granite. At the time, the sculpture cost about $1,500 and was installed under the auspices of the Grand Army of the Republic, the Women’s Relief Corps, and the citizens of Barnstead “in memory of the soldiers and sailors who served in the Revolutionary War, the War of 1812, the Mexican War, and the Civil War.” It bears a later inscription honoring those who served during World War I. In addition to public donations, the town of Barnstead appropriated $300 toward the project.

Tamworth: The town has erected a series of memorials listing those who died in various wars, including the Civil War. They stand together in Veterans Park.

Tilton: Citizens of Tilton and Northfield got together to erect a Soldier’s Monument in 1889. The copper soldier it depicts had become badly tarnished, but recently was cleaned and polished to restore its luster.

Wolfeboro: The town’s Civil War monuments states that it was “Erected to the memory of the loyal men of Wolfeboro who served in the War of 1861-1865 by grateful citizens”.

The Glory Of A Lakes Region Sunset

By Kathi Caldwell-Hopper

“It is almost impossible to watch a sunset and not dream.”

– Bernard Williams

Many boaters say there is nothing more beautiful than watching the sun set over Lake Winnipesaukee. In this, they would be correct. There is something about a glowing, bright orange or soft pink sunset over the lake to nourish the soul with its fantastic beauty.

There are many places to see the sunset, whether by boat or on land. According to local photographer Jeremy Noyes, there are many places to look for a pretty sunset.

Noyes should know because he is an avid sunset (or sunrise) chaser and captures some breathtaking shots of those special times of the day. His photographs illustrate the beauty that occurs when the sun sets over the lake or in the early mornings as the brilliant orb arises. Some images are from spots on private land, where Noyes has permission from the property owner, but most are from public places around the Lakes Region, with the water nearby.

Noyes loves the lake and says it creates a beautiful mirror effect, with a double image of the brilliant colors of a sunset reflected in the water. “I am drawn to sunsets because of the colors and the overall feeling of witnessing the beauty of a sunrise or sun setting over the lake. It gives me a sense of quiet and harmony.

“I typically find places without a lot of people around. The best gems aren’t all that difficult to find, but you must put in some time to seek them out,” he says.

“I like to photograph in places without a lot of people. These areas are best spots. Some popular places the public can be assured of good sunset shows are the Wolfeboro Town Docks, anywhere near Meredith Bay, at Trexler’s Marina in Moultonborough, and 19 Mile Bay in Tuftonboro,” Noyes says.

Although possible to do, Noyes explains that he rarely photographs sunsets from a boat. Indeed, he has done so only once because the simple fact is a boat is moving, and this makes it harder to capture the intensity of a sunset via a photograph. 

 “There are more ripples in the water, and it isn’t a still view because the boat is moving,” he explains. “From land, I can keep the camera stationary to get a longer exposure.”

Among his go-to sunset locations, Roberts Cove in Alton is at the top of the list for Noyes. “It is my favorite place; I find the most beautiful sunsets there. I can see some of the islands on the lake and water reflections.”

Some spots Noyes loves to capture sunset photographs are places with a dock in the foreground. “I call myself a light chaser,” he says. “I just find the sun setting over the mountains or the water stunning; I am particularly interested in sunsets.”

To see the beautiful photographs of Jeremy Noyes, visit his gallery (Jeremy Noyes Gallery) at 23 Main St., Unit #3, in downtown Meredith. The gallery walls are full of photos Noyes has taken that capture scenes of nature, including his favorites, the beloved Lakes Region sunsets taken in various seasons.

The gallery is open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Wednesday, Thursday, and Saturday; Friday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Call 858-761-2504 or visit www.jeremynoyesphotography.com.

When polled, Lakes Regioners have individual thoughts on where their favorite sunsets might be. Nancy Merrill of Alton says, “A great sunset location is definitely the water bandstand in Alton Bay!”

Although not near the water, Steele Hill in Sanbornton rates at the top of the list for Kristin Gage, a resident of that town. Steele Hill is high on a mountain with sweeping views of the area.

For realtor Shannon Casey, the Grand View Motel & Cottages at 291 Endicott Street North in Laconia is her top-of-the-list spot. The Grand View lives up to its name with views of the lakes and mountains from the porch.

Nothing in the Lakes Region beats the mountaintop Castle in the Clouds patio at the Carriage House for dining with a great view. Guests love to have a meal on the patio and enjoy unbeatable views of the sun setting over the lake and mountains with the sweeping landscape far below. 

Some boaters say the sunsets near the Margate Resort on Lake Street in Laconia are one-of-a-kind. Take a boat or pontoon with a group of friends and family and head out on the water for a chance to see an intense sunset. Drop anchor and relax while the sun goes down and provides a glorious end to a hot Lakes Region day.

If you are coming from an island on the lake, you are obviously on a boat. There is much to be said for viewing a beautiful sunset from the water, and Little Barndoor near Parker Island is a popular spot. One commenter on the winnipesaukee.com website says, “I’m voting for the west side of Barndoor Island. The sunset varies from straight up the Broads to Rattlesnake and eventually to Belknap Mountain.”

A sunset photo enthusiast wrote on the winnipesaukee.com forum, “Over the years, I have shot hundreds of sunsets from this spot (the parking lot of O Steak and Seafood), and no two sunsets are ever really the same.” The restaurant is located on Doris Ray Court in Laconia, and the sunset shots are over the water near the eatery.

Many agree that sunsets from a beach at any location around the lake are spectacular, and some great beaches are Ellacoya State Park in Gilford and Carry Beach in Wolfeboro. With the mountains in the background and sand between your toes, the serenity of a sunset from a beach is unbeatable.

A Lake Region boater shared a final opinion of where a viewer might find the best sunset: “Any place is a perfect place to see a sunset on this lake.”

Planning A Spring Garden

Early spring is a great time to start planning your garden — choosing what species to plant, what use to make of the space that is available, and determine what your plants will require.

William Hastings, the University of New Hampshire Cooperative Extension’s agricultural field specialist for Coös County, said planning helps to get the most out of your garden space.

“They’re gonna want to think about things like, do my plants want full sun or shade? Should I transplant seedlings or should I direct-sow seeds? Is the plant I’m planting an annual or biannual or perennial, and how much space does this plant need when it’s mature?” Will said.

By and large, the seed catalogues and seed packages provide the necessary information about what plants are suited for New Hampshire’s climate and what the plants’ needs are.

Seeds will keep for several years if stored properly, but the Extension recommends buying only enough seeds for the current year’s use. If you buy more seeds than you need, it is a good idea to keep them in a cool, dry place. Those in laminated foil packets are likely to stay dry, but those in paper packets should be kept in tightly closed jars or containers and maintained around 40°F with low humidity, according to https://extension.unh.edu/agriculture-gardens/fruit-vegetable-crops.

The Extension warns that gardeners who save seeds from their own gardens may have seeds that are the result of random pollination by insects or other natural agents, and therefore may not produce plants like the parent plants.

Asked how a customer can be sure whether purchased seeds are viable, Will said, “By and large, seed companies are going to do their best to circulate that stock and make sure that what they’re selling is viable, but there are some tests for seed viability.

“I think without getting too into specifics, one option that folks can do is take a sample of those seeds, and they could soak them in a bowl of water for maybe an hour, and then lay them out on a moist paper towel, and make sure that towel stays moist, and over the next couple of days, they should see those seeds start to swell and crack and send out a root. As long as they do that, then, if we’re at a decent percentage of germination, then we can consider those fairly viable.”

With longer-season crops, it is a good idea to arrange an early launch of the growing season by starting the plants indoors.

“An example of that would be a tomato plant,” Will said. “If we can get a nice vigorous transplant going, that’ll help it get a jump-start on the season.

“Shorter-season, quick-growing crops like lettuce can either be started as a transplant or direct-seeded. Things with a really long root don’t like to be transplanted a lot of the time, so carrots would be an example of something that we would want to direct-seed. We wouldn’t want to try and transplant a carrot.”

Some plants, such as kale, will keep producing all season long, allowing the gardener to continue harvesting it throughout the summer and well into fall. Broccoli, on the other hand, will provide only one harvest.

“This is a reason why it’s good to read the seed packet,” Will said.

“Spring is also a good time to clean up our gardens or our planter containers,” Will continued. “We want to remove any old dead material or debris from last year, and this is important because that can harbor different pests or diseases.”

He said that means focusing on cleaning off what is on the surface, such as old tomato stems.

“Leftover roots in the soil are going to be okay the majority of the time. Those are just going to break down and contribute to your soil’s biodiversity, but tilling and hand-weeding and mulching are all good practices to keep on top of early-season weeds,” he said.

“If folks haven’t taken a soil test in several years, they may want to consider submitting one for testing,” Will noted. “You can reach out to your local Extension office and we would be happy to provide you with a sample form and guidelines. That’s going to tell you what nutrients your soil has in abundance and those that you should incorporate to provide proper plant nutrition throughout the growing season.”

It is a good idea to delay planting until the frost danger has passed, which usually means waiting until at least Memorial Day to plant the garden.

“Memorial Day is a conservative estimate of the last frost date in Central New Hampshire,” Will said. “While this winter wasn’t too impressive, late-season frost can still kill or damage newly growing plants, so it’s good to wait until this danger is past before we put out any unprotected plants.”

Preparing plants that have been grown inside from seedlings for being transplanted in the garden requires some acclimation — called “hardening” —, according to Will.

“Plants that are growing indoors in a controlled environment, especially under artificial light, are much more fragile than ones that have been grown outside,” he explained, “so we want to slowly introduce them into the real world. A good way to do this is to slowly increase their exposure to outside conditions.”

Start by placing them in a shady place on the porch for an hour or two, then bringing them back inside, he said.

“Then bring them outside, and then we’re slowly going to increase their exposure,” he continued. “So we’ll set them out for a few hours the next day, and slowly increase their exposure to the full sun, and get them used to being in the wind.”

“Most importantly,” Will said, “have fun with it and enjoy being outside.”

Those seeking more specific information can seek answers to their questions through Ask UNH Extension at 1-877-EXT-GROW (1-877-398-4769) or answers@unh.edu, a free service that connects home gardeners with Master Gardener volunteers.